Mint Coffeehouse brings a taste of Syrian culture to Tucker

The Alzoukanis first met at a coffee shop, so it’s only fitting they would open one together several years later.

Mint combines elements from both America and Syria, Marianna Alzoukani said. Offerings include espresso and tea drinks with specialties like a mint mocha latte and a chai latte. Food offerings include waffles, avocado toast and toast with labne (kefir cheese), zatar seasoning and olives on Italian bread. There are also pastries sourced from a Sandy Springs wholesale bakery.

Credit: Courtesy of Mint Coffeehouse

Credit: Courtesy of Mint Coffeehouse

Ahmad Alzoukani moved from Syria to the United States in 2015 and found his first job at Refuge Coffee Company in Clarkston not long after it opened. Refuge Coffee Company, a nonprofit organization that provides jobs and training for resettled refugees and immigrants, now has four locations around Georgia, with Clarkston as its flagship.

Over the course of his five years at Refuge, Ahmad Alzoukani was promoted to catering manager and general manager. It was “an amazing experience,” he said, which allowed him to practice speaking English and, most importantly, build a professional network.

Coffee has always been a large part of Syrian culture, he said. Most mornings, his family would wake up and start their day with coffee, so working at Refuge taught him the process of how to make coffee from the beginning.

It’s also where he met his wife.

Credit: Courtesy of Mint Coffeehouse

Credit: Courtesy of Mint Coffeehouse

Marianna Alzoukani, who’s from Virginia, was a graduate student in Atlanta when she started frequenting Refuge as a place to study outside of her apartment. She soon became a regular, and she and Ahmad Alzoukani developed a friendship.

“He’s very personable, (he) wants to get to know customers and cares to meet regulars,” she said.

A few years later, they held their wedding at Refuge Coffee. Marianna Alzoukani never expected coffee to become such a large part of her life, but she wanted to support her husband once she saw how passionate he was about starting his own business.

Credit: Courtesy of Mint Coffeehouse

Credit: Courtesy of Mint Coffeehouse

Mint Coffeehouse began as an espresso bar and catering service that the Alzoukanis ran for several years with the goal of opening a brick-and-mortar. Ahmad Alzoukani wanted to reference mint in the name because the herb has a strong taste and smell and can grow through most seasons.

“It means they fight for their life, and they are strong and healthy,” he said. “I learned from that herb that you can be strong, and you can do anything that you want as long as you believe in yourself.”

Now that the Alzoukanis have their own coffee shop, they want to lend a hand to friends and other immigrants and refugees by hiring them and helping them with their own businesses. Ahmad Alzoukani said the biggest challenges of being an immigrant include learning the primary language and building a network of friends and colleagues.

Credit: Courtesy of Mint Coffeehouse

Credit: Courtesy of Mint Coffeehouse

Despite these challenges, the shop is a little slice of home for Ahmad Alzoukani. The couple purchased decorations from Syria the last few times they visited, so the space is filled with Syrian coffee pots, pans, wooden shelves inlaid with mother of pearl, figurines lined up behind the espresso machine, and Ahmad Alzoukani’s favorite piece — a set of light fixtures hanging above the bar with intricate beaded patterns.

“I always have this dream to have something from home,” Ahmad said. “I want to come to the shop and remember my home in Syria.”

3926 Lawrenceville Highway, Tucker. 678-613-4670, mintcoffeehouse.com

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