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Tampa’s newest coffee cart goes viral
Meet the couple behind Tampa’s giant pink coffee cup café. FOX 13’s Mariah Harrison reports.
TAMPA, Fla. - Tampa’s latest coffee cart is probably the hottest cup of Joe on the market, and it’s also likely the largest cup of coffee on the market. However, this giant idea actually started off quite small.
The backstory:
The Big Coffee Cup Café first opened for business in June after eight months of construction.
Co-owners and couple, Amr Sharaki and Lina Al Ramadhani, first came across little pink espresso cups on Pintrest and the inspiration quickly followed.
"The initial idea was going to be an actual coffee shop," Sharaki explained. "And then, the initial idea was that we also were broke, so we realized that it was too expensive to start a business."
They downsized their original dream of a brick-and-mortar café into a mobile coffee cart, upgraded the design into a giant pink cup.
Dig deeper:
They designed and built the trailer themselves in a South Tampa backyard with help from someone who offered space.
"We didn’t have the money to give it to a welder because it’s expensive and we also didn’t have the knowledge to go all the way to China manufacturers and also we’re stubborn enough and we’re artists and we just wanted to do something ourselves," Sharaki added.
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After eight months of building and picking the perfect pink color, the Big Coffee Cup Café was born with the pair designing and optimizing the space for custom storage and use.
They sold their first cups of coffee in June.
The café has become a community favorite, thanks in part to social media buzz.
Ramadhani knew they had something special on day three when she was working in the café alone and her phone lit up with several texts.
"It said, "Have you been in TikTok yet?’ And I opened it later and realized it went viral," she stated.
Working in close quarters with no air conditioning could get sticky working with your significant other every day, but the couple says it works for them.
What's next:
The pair plan to grow their business and with their viral fame. They may expand offerings or locations.
The Source: This story is based on a TV interview script featuring Amr Sharaki and Lina Al Ramadhani, the owners of The Big Coffee Cup Cafe in Tampa. Quotes come directly from their recorded interviews and social media posts, including TikTok and Instagram reels documenting the café’s viral rise.