Tu Y Yo means “You and I” in Spanish.
It’s the moniker of the newest café in Sewickley, offering Latin American coffee, small bites and sweets.
“This is my newest journey,” said owner Grace Betancourt Jones, who lives in Fox Chapel. “I talked with my husband, my children, my mother and others and decided to create a place to bring people together.”
Tu Y Yo café in Sewickley opened at the beginning of August. It is her second location; the first café is located in Indiana Twp. and opened in 2019.
“I have always wanted to have a café in Sewickley,” Betancourt Jones said. “It is a welcoming town and everyone in Sewickley has been wonderful.”
The vibe is definitely welcoming.
When designing the Sewickley space, Betancourt Jones said she wanted a nook area for children with a small table and chairs, a teen section with seats and places to work on a computer and a lounge area to relax and visit.
A mother of five, Betancourt Jones designed the café to be a safe space for the community to gather. She took time to refresh the inside, which included colorful and meaningful wall paintings by artist Jessica Geyer.
“If you are going to truly bring people together, you can’t just feature one area of the world,” she said of her offerings from several countries.
Coffee choices include espresso, Americano and dulce de leche latte. Betancourt Jones offers a taste of her native Venezuela: a toddy, which is a rich, creamy chocolate drink. Colombian and Mexican hot chocolate choices and fruit smoothies are also on the menu.
There are Cuban panini, empanadas and gluten-free arepas.
A market has items from Peru, Brazil, Cuba, Ecuador and Honduras.
“The items she has in stock are hard to find anywhere else,” said Diana Edwards of Bellevue. “She specializes in authentic foods and sundries from various countries. The special desserts are so, so good. The environment she has created is unique and vibrant. It’s so welcoming.”
Betancourt Jones came to the U.S. with her mother and siblings 49 years ago when her mom attended the University of Pittsburgh for international studies. It was with the help of the Small Business Development Center at Pitt that Betancourt Jones was able to start her business. Along with the Small Business Development Center, she will host an event at the Sewickley café sometime in October.
“I want this to be a place where everyone feels included,” Betancourt Jones said. “I want people to feel comfortable. When you meet someone for coffee, it’s a place to learn about each other and to catch up on life. I put my heart into this.”
