“We are ride or die. No matter where Saeng goes, we are ride or die until the wheels fall off.”
This is what Suzanne Morris, a regular at Black Phin, wanted me to know most regarding one of its co-owners, Saeng Khouvongsavanh. The coffee shop — which he runs alongside his wife, Linhda Huynh — is named after the main Vietnamese drink it serves: phin drip cā phe (coffee). Black Phin is a part of a small business hub called Harmon Collective, inhabiting the previous home of Lombardi’s Seafood market. In the shared building, plants from Kiwi & Fern give the room a lush feel. Past the coffee bar is a fitness space, All Inclusive CrossFit, focused on empowerment and community.
Suzanne Morris and her husband, Julian Morris, visit the spot weekly, an outcome of frequenting an earlier endeavor of Khouvongsavanh and Huynh: The Tea Social, a mobile boba tea shop. Since befriending Khouvongsavanh, Suzanne Morris says she and her husband have been committed to any and all of his undertakings. As I chatted with the couple at a small table by the eye-catching leafy indoor mural, Suzanne Morris was eager to jump right into just what made this place so special for them both: Khouvongsavanh.
Tell me a little bit about yourself.
Suzanne Morris: We’ve been married, what, going on 14 years this year?
Julian Morris: Yeah, 14 years.
Suzanne: Got a daughter, she’s 13, and we live over on the east side, over by UCF in the Waterford Lakes area. And we first were introduced to Saeng — what year was it? It was five years ago? … Yeah, it was, I think it was around March or April. So, it’s been literally almost exactly five years. He had his Tea Social truck, and it would sit up at Waterford Lakes. We would go, and I’d be like, “What is this Tea Social thing?” Because he would just leave it there, even when he wasn’t open. He would be there a couple times, and we would just kind of walk by, and I would look at the little menu or whatever. And then — I don’t even remember what made us stop, but my daughter was playing basketball at the time. So every day after her basketball games … we would go get a slice of pizza, and [The Tea Social] was right across from the pizza place.
We had never had boba before. … So we’re like, “Let’s try this boba stuff.” And [Saeng] had this one called the “Seoul Strawberry” — my daughter loved it. It’s pretty much like strawberry milk, and she would get boba in it. … She would ask for that, like, every day. Of course, he wasn’t out there every day, but it became like a thing where, after her basketball games, we would go get her boba if he was out.
[The drinks] were very fresh tasting — always had fresh fruit in it, a perfect balance, never too sweet — all the drinks were just so good. And we literally drank all of them, because we went so much. … But that’s where the beginning of our obsession came in. It grew into more than just wanting the boba. We just really loved [Saeng]. Like, he’s so sweet and so genuine, and just down-to-earth.
Julian: Yeah, you could tell that he cares about his customers, and he cares about just bringing you in.
Suzanne: It was a food truck. But the way he treated us, we felt like we were guests at his house.
Julian: Yeah.
Suzanne: You know how someone hosts people at their house, and are hospitable and all? … The relationship kind of grew from that, and it just became like, “Whatever Saeng does, I’m gonna always support him.” … I know as a small business owner, it’s not easy. But we just know he has so much passion behind, not just his product and what he does, but serving people as well. It comes out in what he does. So when he started telling us about the coffee shop, he was still doing the truck, and I was like, “Well, just let us know of course.” … This was always his heart and his passion. He told us this was what he really wanted to do, was really bring that Vietnamese coffee. And so we were here, of course, regularly.
Suzanne and Julian Morris. (NICK GEORGOUDIOU)
In your mind, what makes Black Phin stand out?
Julian: What makes it stand out to me is, as she stated before, [Saeng’s] compassion to not only his customers, but to his product. He just makes you feel welcome. You walk on in, and it’s almost like family.
Suzanne: I mean, the space, of course … this atmosphere, I think, definitely plays into the aesthetic. [It’s] an awesome thing, that they’re able to share space with [other] businesses, with the All Inclusive CrossFit … but it’s actually just such a beautiful space. Like, you feel it, when you’re here. And then, his staff — I love all his staff. They’re super helpful.
Like I said, whatever [Saeng] comes up with, we’re gonna be like, “Yes, we’ll try it. What do you want to do?” [Laughing.] I mean, we used to — we would drive all the way from UCF to Longwood if his truck was gonna be out there.
That’s a lot of dedication. I’m sure that means a lot to him.
Suzanne: Yeah … he would be like, “What are you guys doing out here?”
“We’ve come to see you, Saeng!”
What’s your go-to? Do you ever mix it up?
Suzanne: So, I do have this thing where I have to try everything.
I got that sense when you mentioned you tried all of The Tea Social’s menu [laughing].
Suzanne: I have to, I have to! We can’t get the same thing, because I wanted to try different things. But I will say [laughing], he warned us when we started drinking, because we are not regular coffee drinkers. So when we started trying out the coffee, he was like, “Listen. Vietnamese coffee’s pretty strong.” But, he was like, “The bạc xỉu is kind of like a latte,” which is more my flow. I want my milky, creamy flavoring. So we both started drinking the bạc xỉu and we loved it.
The Morrises told me about all the different drinks the two of them have tried, everything from matcha with rose-infused milk to coffee with orange juice. After discovering the coffee makes him jittery, Julian has gravitated toward the new monthly teas on the menu. Suzanne loves drinking a matcha latte with ube foam — affectionately calling it the “Hulkster,” in reference to the starkly contrasting purple of the foam against the green matcha — and drinks matcha almost daily, even making her own concoctions at home. On the pastry and sandwich side of the menu, the couple has tasted everything there, too. Suzanne said Saeng has even shared some recipes with her.
Suzanne: I love that I’m learning so much about a culture that I’ve never been exposed to, just from the food offerings that he has. Because he’ll sit down and he’ll tell us, “I got this fridge for this, for this. This is a traditional Vietnamese thing, but we’re doing this with it.” Or, “There’s this coffee shop in Chicago that does it, but we’re gonna do it this way.” And, it’s just interesting. … To me, it shows his intentionality. He’s really trying to introduce a culture to us through the offerings that he brings, and he does the research. … Aside from just being so friendly and so welcoming, it’s also the heart that he has in what he’s doing. To me, it makes a difference.
