Kendall and Aisha Griffin didn’t just open a coffee shop — they built a community in a cup. Launched in October 2020 at the height of a global pandemic, with indoor dining shutting down just weeks after their doors opened, Afro Joe’s Coffee & Tea refused to fold. They pivoted, pushed through, and kept pouring — and Chicago’s South Side is better for it.
Now anchored in the Beverly neighborhood at 1818 W. 99th St., Afro Joe’s has become one of the most beloved coffee shops in the city, earning a spot on Yelp’s Top 100 Coffee Shops in the United States — the only Chicago and Illinois representative on the list. The accolade is well-earned. Regulars are greeted by name. Kids pick free books from the in-house children’s library. The mayor of Chicago and the neighborhood garbage truck driver get the same warm welcome. That’s the Afro Joe’s way.
The menu is a love letter to Chicago’s Black neighborhoods, with dishes inspired by Kendall and Aisha’s travels and named after the communities that shaped them. The South Side Short Rib Grilled Cheese — made with short rib braised for 24 hours — sells out daily. The Caramel Macchiato is a bestseller. The Victoria, a strawberry and lavender lemonade named after a regular customer, is the kind of detail that tells you exactly what this place is about.
But Afro Joe’s runs on four pillars that go far beyond coffee: maternal health, community, supporting living artists, and children’s literacy. Through their partnership with the Chicago Birthworks Collective, Aisha — who opened this shop while pregnant with her first child — has turned Afro Joe’s into a safe haven for Black expecting mothers, hosting birthing series, lactation consultations, and maternal health events because she knows firsthand that Black women deserve better information, better support, and better outcomes.
This is what a coffee shop looks like when it’s built with purpose. Pull up, grab a cup, and stay awhile.
1818 W. 99th St., Chicago, IL 60643 · afrojoes.com
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