Story and Photos by
Annabella Mireles
Additional photography courtesy of
Ramon Parada
If you happen to have gone to the Enrique Moreno County Courthouse these past few months, you may have seen a boarded-up section on the third floor with a poster that reads “Glia’s Coffee Co. Brewing Soon!”
The local coffee business has boomed from their java trailer that usually resides at the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, their Arizona Ave location and now their county courthouse location which opened Jan. 27th.
This local coffee shop has sparked an interest in the community because of their creative drink menu with items such as their cookie butter latte and lavender matcha lemonade, their consistent presence in community events such as Winterfest and Girls Run the 915, and the interesting backstory of owner Ramon Parada, whose background is in health science, and the adorable furry mascot, his dog Glia.
“I attended graduate school at Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center El Paso,” Parada said. “I did a post baccalaureate program for biomedical science and then later a master’s program also in biomedical science. I’ve been a student for a long time, and I feel that something that goes hand in hand with being a student is going to coffee shops to study. When COVID happened, they closed all the coffee shops, and I didn’t have anywhere to study. I had to force myself to be efficient at home, so that’s when I started creating an at-home coffee bar to mimic that experience.”
Parada says the transition from making coffee at home to having a mobile coffee shop happened seamlessly, and with the help of Texas Teach Health Sciences Center who allowed Parada to bring the trailer on to campus that helped his business boom.
“There weren’t any local coffee shops around campus,” he said. “I saw a strip mall across the street and thought that would be a great spot, which would be accessible to everyone. We wouldn’t have been able to improve our standing as a business, which is why staying involved in that community has been so important for us.”
Parada’s sidekick, his golden retriever Glia, is the face of the business and has been a fan favorite, making appearances at different local events, using pure doggie adorableness to help attract clientele.
“Glia is my puppy who I named after a type of brain cell,” he said. “Since my background is in neuroscience, I thought naming her after a cell would be catchy and would stand out. I’ve always had dogs, so it seemed natural to me to include her in the branding. A lot of people like dogs, so when they see the logo or see Glia on social media, those posts usually get more engagement than our regular posts.”
With the success of their trailer and Arizona Ave location, it’s no surprise the expansion of Glia’s Coffee Co. has taken them to a prominent location such as the courthouse which houses about 2000 employees.
“It’s been fun but also a little scary because this location is going to be pretty high-volume compared to our other locations,” he said. “But we are equipped to handle the number of customers, and we are really excited because we are the only coffee vendors inside the courthouse – so we have a lot of control in the creative process.”
With the opening of their new location, customers can continue to see their fan favorite drinks that are inspired by Mexican treats.
“We draw a lot of inspiration from Mexican cuisine,” he said. “I was born and raised in Juarez and came to the U.S. when I was in my late adolescence. We try to incorporate those flavors into our drinks and only use high quality ingredients.”
Giving back to the community is top priority to Parada who values education and appreciates the opportunity that Texas Teach Health Sciences Center has given him, and wants to show his appreciation by offering scholarships to those who follow a similar path.
“We created a scholarship that’s focused on natives of the border region who want to pursue a career in medicine,” he said. “We use a percentage of all the proceeds of our sales toward the scholarship. There’s a shortage of physicians here in El Paso, especially Spanish speaking family medicine doctors, so we want to help fund someone who wants to stay and serve the city.”
In addition to providing the scholarship, Parada also hosts workshops at the store such as home brewing and latte art.
“At our workshops, we teach people how to brew coffee at home (and accessible ways to do so), as well as introduce them to different coffee beans so they can taste the difference,” he said. “Our Creative Director Deven James McCoy helped us create the latte art workshop where we taught attendees how to make art using milk. We’re also working on other workshop ideas such as pizza making classes and matcha workshops.”
“I’d say our business is fun, innovative, and Tex-Mex,” Parada said when asked what three words describe his business. “We’re launching a bakery program, so we are going to start baking everything in-house and create new pastries that come and go with the seasons.”
Whether you’re in the mood for a Mexican drink inspired latte like their specialty Abuelita Mocha latte or crave a savory snack such as their chilaquiles verdes, or even just want to catch the contagious energy beaming from mascot Glia, Glia’s Coffee Co. is a must-try for any dog lover who wants to relax and indulge in some good local coffee.