COFFEE BEANS & BEINGS / CAFE SANTO AN ENDURING BLESSING IN LA'S EAST SIDE

520 W Whittier Boulevard, Montebello, CA 

When Culinary Backstreets profiled Café Santo in 2022, it read like a love letter to a project just finding its footing. Marlon Gonzales and his partner Pilar Castañeda had finally brought their Oaxacan-inspired pop-up into a permanent home at Montebello’s BLVD Market. They wanted to offer more than caffeine—they wanted community, culture, and craft. Three years later, Café Santo is still pouring strong, and the vision has held. 

The first impression hasn’t changed much: white walls, spare décor softened by potted cacti and hand-drawn graphics from Oaxacan artists. The space feels curated but not sterile, a little gallery with an espresso machine at its heart. Instagram in 2025 shows the café as bright as ever, with that same minimalist warmth. It remains the market’s most inviting street-facing tenant, coaxing customers off Whittier Boulevard into a space that feels both local and international. 

The coffee continues to be the backbone of Café Santo. Gonzales still works with trusted collaborators like Casa Tostadora in Boyle Heights, sourcing beans and dialing in roast profiles that reflect his Oaxacan roots. Patrons today rave about the Oaxacan mocha, a deep chocolate-coffee hybrid that bridges two traditions with elegance. Yelp reviews from this summer note consistently strong espresso work, even if some find the prices edging toward upscale Los Angeles norms. 

But Café Santo was never meant to be just about coffee. From the beginning, chocolate was its other pulse. In 2022, they served three house drinking chocolates with origins in Oaxaca, made in collaboration with Rito Chocolateria and Reina Negra. That practice endures, and while the lineup rotates, the chocolate-espresso interplay still defines the menu. Weekend specials like memelas and minimalist breakfast burritos remain part of the draw, alongside chilaquiles that reviewers describe as “worth the trip alone.” 

If the early years promised ambitious cultural programming—mezcal pairings, art openings—today’s Café Santo seems to focus more on daily service than on staging elaborate events. Their Instagram highlights fewer community gatherings than before, a sign perhaps of pandemic aftershocks and the practicalities of running a small shop. Even so, the café continues to collaborate with local artists, and Cuarto Central, Pilar’s art studio nearby, helps keep creativity flowing. 

The verdict in 2025 is similar to that in 2022: Café Santo is more than a café. It is still an expression of Oaxacan identity transplanted to Montebello soil, still a stylish and soulful spot in an area not always known for specialty coffee. Where it once embodied promise, it now embodies resilience. Three years on, Gonzales and Castañeda have shown that their project is not a novelty but a sustained contribution to Los Angeles coffee culture.