From Fashion to Coffee, from Family to Cafe
Growing up in Astoria, Queens, I pursued my passion for fashion and graduated from FIT with a degree in fashion designing and merchandising. When I met my husband Jeff in the 90s, we combined our skills, merging my merchandising expertise with his budding coffee business. This partnership led us to successfully open our first cafe in the East Village. However, after the financial crisis in 2008, we faced tremendous adversity and lost everything, including our business and home, leaving us penniless and raising our two young daughters.
Determined to rebuild our lives, we seized an opportunity in 2015 to take over a failing cafe in Palisades Park, New Jersey, where we started anew, working tirelessly to make it thrive.
Family, Community, and Hard Work
In the early days, we faced immense challenges, often working 16-hour shifts as we couldn't afford to hire employees. Even our daughters, then 11 and 12 years old, stepped in to assist during school nights, juggling their studies and helping out. After five years of unwavering dedication, we defied the odds and opened our second location in Teaneck in the midst of the pandemic. Despite the difficult circumstances, we believed our community needed a haven outside their homes, a second home they could rely on.
In a stroke of luck, we relocated our original cafe across the street to a new location in Palisades Park, providing us with a larger kitchen and increased seating capacity. Throughout our journey, we owe our success to the unwavering support of our friends, family, and community. In gratitude, we actively give back by partnering with local elementary schools, public libraries, the fire department, and more, hosting fundraisers and donation drives. Additionally, we proudly sponsor local little league teams and theater troupes whenever possible.
– Cherie Ryu
We’re Proud of Our Cafe!
Scroll through our photo gallery to learn more about our delicious Kudo story.
Kudo Society: Where friends, family, and community can connect
Our team strives to create an authentic experience for you to enjoy specialty coffees and teas, a variety of healthy and delicious food, plus our Korean-inspired desserts. From our opening day, we have been devoted to using the finest ingredients, processes, and food prep technology.
Our goal is this: To share the finest quality products and services with the world by infusing the best of specialty coffee & tea, gourmet food, and desserts, so that we may offer the ultimate year-round café experience.
Thank you for checking us out.
Thank you for your support! We really hope you become part of our Kudo family. Kudos to You!