Miami’s hottest new matcha café started with…a loaf of bread in a family group chat.
That first sourdough loaf grew into trays of gooey cinnamon rolls, then a mobile trailer parked at the University of Miami, and a TikTok-ready menu of matcha lattes layered with strawberry jam, whipped honey, and banana bread syrup. All of it happened in less than a year.
Now Honey Veil, run by sisters Cecilia “Ceci” Alcobe, 22, and Regina Alcobe, 19, both University of Miami students, has gone from farmers market hobby to full-fledged brand with a South Miami storefront opening this fall.
From tennis rackets to cinnamon rolls
The Alcobes didn’t grow up plotting café empires. They grew up on tennis courts, training five to six hours a day and traveling for tournaments. When their mom, also named Cecilia, started baking sourdough at home, friends begged for loaves. In October 2024, the sisters figured they’d give a farmers' market a try. By February 2025, the family had pooled savings into a trailer and parked it anywhere a friend would let them.
Once the truck was rolling, the sisters got serious about social media, inviting local food influencers to try their drinks and pastries. The buzz grew quickly, and videos of their matcha and baked goods began going viral.
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Matcha makeover
Ceci admits she used to hate matcha. “I thought it was gross. Just Starbucks green sludge,” she says. A study abroad program in Japan changed her mind. She came back hooked on matcha culture and determined to bring a better version home.
Now Honey Veil sources ceremonial-grade matcha from Shizuoka, near Mount Fuji. Regina takes the lead on creating the flavors, layering the matcha with syrups and jams sweetened by honey, coconut sugar, and maple. She even stumbled onto their wildly popular honey whip—a light, fluffy cream made from whipped honey – by accident, while trying (and failing) to make a healthy meringue.
The Honey Veil Matcha, made with honey-vanilla bean syrup, is the namesake latte. The Blue Babe Matcha, filled with blueberry jam, adds a fruity kick. But the breakout hit is the Banana Bread Matcha, a one-time special that became their most in-demand drink and now tops the sales charts.
For first-timers, Ceci suggests keeping it simple: grab a Honey Veil Matcha and a sourdough cinnamon roll for the full experience. Get there early, though, because by 2pm on weekends, both the rolls and the honey whip topping are usually gone.
"I thought [matcha] was gross. Just Starbucks green sludge."
Family, but make it business
Mom still runs the oven, turning out sourdough loaves, banana bread, and gluten-free lemon-poppy loaves. Regina focuses on new flavor ideas—she keeps a running list sparked by TikTok desserts and customer requests—while Ceci manages sourcing and day-to-day operations. Their tennis background explains the drive, and the menu options. “We’ve always eaten clean at home,” Ceci says. “That’s why we use maple syrup, honey, and coconut sugar instead of refined sugar.”
You can find the trailer at two spots for now: inside the University of Miami campus at 1301 Memorial Drive in Coral Gables during the week and at Dragonfly Thrift Boutique (5815 Southwest 68th Street, South Miami) on weekends. Once the brick-and-mortar café across from Sunset Place opens this fall, the plan is for the truck to roam to new neighborhoods instead of staying put.
Ceci isn’t shy about her bigger dreams. “We definitely want to expand a little in Miami. New York was one of our thoughts. And my personal dream would be to have one back in Tokyo,” she says.
From a family group chat to weekend lines out the trailer, Honey Veil’s rise has been fast. But the sisters say their focus stays on enjoying the process and building the brand step by step. In Miami, those steps just happen to taste like matcha and cinnamon rolls.