My name is Niall Mackay, founder of Seven Million Bikes Podcasts and host of this show – A Vietnam Podcast.
Vietnam is one of the world’s largest coffee producers, yet its coffee remains widely misunderstood, especially in the specialty coffee industry.
Sahra Nguyen, founder of Nguyen Coffee Supply, is determined to change this. Through her company, she is not only elevating Vietnamese Robusta to specialty status but also advocating for transparency, ethical sourcing, and proper representation of Vietnamese coffee and farmers.
We talked the misconceptions surrounding Vietnamese coffee, the barriers it faces, and how Sahra is leading a movement to redefine its place in the global coffee industry.
A Journey Rooted in Resilience
Sahra’s story begins with her parents, who left Vietnam in the late 1970s, shortly after the war. Like many Vietnamese refugees, they faced immense struggles—lack of work, food shortages, and uncertainty about the future. Both of them attempted multiple times to leave before finally escaping successfully.
They embarked on a dangerous journey by boat, spending months at sea before arriving at a refugee camp in Hong Kong, where they stayed for nearly two years. By sheer coincidence, they both ended up being sponsored to the U.S., eventually settling in Boston, where they would later meet and build a life together.
Growing up in a Vietnamese immigrant household, Sahra understood what it meant to straddle two cultures. Her parents rarely spoke about their past, a common experience for children of refugees. Their trauma was something they carried silently, yet Sahra and many others from her generation longed to connect with their roots, to understand their history, and to preserve the stories of those who had come before them.
That’s why she deeply values projects like the Vietnamese Boat People podcast, which captures the experiences of refugees and their families. Sahra has worked on initiatives to document these stories, recognizing that while many from her parents’ generation struggle to talk about their past, preserving these narratives is crucial for future generations.
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Sahra’s Inspiration To Start Her Vietnamese Coffee Business
Before speaking with Sahra, I already loved Vietnamese coffee. Living in Vietnam, I drank it every day, but I hadn’t really thought much about how it was perceived outside of the country. What I learned from her was shocking.
In the U.S., Vietnamese coffee was often marketed as a trendy, buzzword drink—but in most cases, it wasn’t actually made with Vietnamese coffee beans.
Sahra explained that around 2016, Vietnamese food started having a big moment in the U.S. Just like Chinese, Japanese, and Thai food before it, Vietnamese cuisine was becoming more mainstream. Restaurants and cafes were adding Vietnamese iced coffee to their menus.
At first,Sahra was excited to see Vietnamese iced coffee showing up on menus across the U.S. It felt like a step toward recognition. But when she started ordering it, something felt off. The taste wasn’t right.
Curious, she began asking baristas what beans they were using. Time and time again, she got the same answer—Ethiopian, Brazilian, Colombian. Not Vietnamese. Essentially, these cafes were selling regular espresso or cold brew with condensed milk and calling it “Vietnamese coffee.”
It was misleading in multiple ways. Customers thought they were experiencing authentic Vietnamese coffee when, in reality, they weren’t. Worse, the people who actually grew Vietnamese coffee—farmers in Vietnam—weren’t benefiting at all.
Businesses were profiting off the name and the culture, but the actual producers were being left out of the equation.
That realization pushed Sahra to dig deeper into the specialty coffee industry in the U.S.
Vietnam’s Coffee Industry & The Misconceptions That Hold It Back
For starters, many people—including Sahra herself before her research—had no idea that Vietnam was the second-largest coffee producer in the world. That fact alone should place Vietnamese coffee at the forefront of the global conversation, but instead, it has been largely ignored or misrepresented.
One of the biggest reasons for this is the specialty coffee industry’s preference for Arabica beans. For years, Arabica has been marketed as superior—more refined, more complex—while Robusta, Vietnam’s primary coffee crop, has been labeled as cheap and bitter.
However, that’s an oversimplification. Robusta beans have distinct characteristics that make them unique: they contain nearly twice the caffeine of Arabica, have lower acidity, and produce a bolder, richer cup. While lower-grade Robusta has been used in instant coffee, high-quality, specialty-grade Robusta can stand on its own—and even outperform Arabica in some cases.
Despite this, the industry’s bias has persisted. Instead of exploring ways to improve and promote Robusta, many coffee brands and roasters simply dismissed it. And because of this, Vietnamese coffee was rarely acknowledged as a specialty product.
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Challenging the Industry with Nguyen Coffee Supply
Determined to change the narrative,Sahra launched Nguyen Coffee Supply—America’s first specialty Vietnamese coffee importer and roaster.
She saw a massive opportunity: if Vietnam was already the second-largest coffee producer in the world, then the product was already there. What was missing was recognition, quality improvement, and a commitment to transparency.
Specialty coffee isn’t just about taste—it’s about investing in better farming practices, sustainability, and fair wages for producers. In the specialty coffee world, farmers are trained to pick only the ripest cherries, use organic fertilizers, and improve their processing techniques. These steps lead to higher-quality beans that can be sold at a premium price, benefiting farmers and the industry as a whole.
But when it came to Vietnam, the specialty coffee industry didn’t apply these same values. Instead of investing in Vietnamese coffee and helping improve its quality, they simply dismissed it.
Sahra wanted to prove that Vietnam could produce specialty-grade coffee—and that Robusta deserved to be taken seriously.
She started by partnering directly with Vietnamese farmers, ensuring they were paid fairly and had the resources to produce higher-quality beans. Then, she imported the green beans to the U.S. and roasted them in Brooklyn, using small-batch, craft roasting techniques.
By roasting the beans herself, she could control the process and showcase the full potential of Vietnamese coffee. Instead of relying on outdated industry perceptions, she let the coffee speak for itself.
Changing the Industry
Her approach worked. Since its launch, Nguyen Coffee Supply has received over 500 inquiries from businesses looking to serve its coffee. More and more roasters and cafés are reaching out, interested in sourcing Vietnamese green beans. The demand is growing, and so is awareness.
In fact, Vietnamese coffee culture is expanding across the U.S. at an incredible rate. Sahra and her team have tracked a 1100% increase in the number of Vietnamese coffee shops opening nationwide. Even King Coffee, a well-known Vietnamese brand, has opened its first U.S. café in California, with plans to expand rapidly.
Overcoming Barriers & Changing Consumer Perceptions
Of course, shifting industry bias isn’t easy. Many people still associate Vietnamese coffee with instant coffee or assume that all Robusta is low-quality. Education is key.
Beyond Condensed Milk
Sahra’s goal isn’t just to sell Vietnamese coffee—it’s to change the way people think about it. Part of that involves breaking down stereotypes, including the idea that Vietnamese coffee must always be served with condensed milk.
Yes, cà phê sữa đá (Vietnamese iced coffee with condensed milk) is delicious, but condensed milk doesn’t define Vietnamese coffee. Other cultures, like Spain and Thailand, also use condensed milk in their coffee, yet they aren’t reduced to that single ingredient.
More Than Just One Brewing Method
Vietnamese coffee should be recognized for its versatility. It can be brewed using a phin filter, espresso machine, pour-over, or any other method. It can be enjoyed black, with oat milk, or with cream and sugar. The beans should be the focus—not just how they’re sweetened.
Ensuring Quality & Transparency in Vietnamese Coffee
Another challenge is ensuring quality and transparency in the supply chain. Some concerns about fake or low-quality coffee do exist, but that’s exactly why companies like Nguyen Coffee Supply are so important. By working directly with farmers and overseeing the roasting process, Sahra ensures that her coffee meets the highest standards.
Even major corporations are starting to take notice. Recently, the Japanese beverage giant announced an investment in sustainable coffee farming in Vietnam. This is a sign that change is happening. As consumer demand for high-quality, ethical Vietnamese coffee grows, more companies will follow.
For Sahra, this is just the beginning. She wants to see a future where Vietnamese coffee isn’t an afterthought—it’s a respected and celebrated part of the specialty coffee industry.
Conclusion – The Future of Vietnamese Coffee
Vietnamese coffee is no longer an afterthought—it’s becoming a key player in the specialty coffee movement. Thanks to pioneers like Sahra Nguyen, the industry is starting to recognize the quality, versatility, and potential of Vietnamese Robusta.
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