If you’ve been paying attention to Geneva’s cafe and coffee scene lately, you’ve probably noticed a trend: it’s been growing fast.

During the past year, several new cafes and coffee spots have opened around town — a wave that’s followed the closing of Graham’s 318 Coffeehouse, which for years was one of downtown’s most popular gathering places.

The latest addition to the community brings a new vibe to the table. That would be Savia Cafe, a cozy, plant-filled coffee, pastry, and grab-and-go spot that recently opened inside the Metra station building near Third Street.

Owner Angeles Contreras has been quietly working toward this moment for years — and she’s intentionally easing into the first few weeks rather than trying to do everything at once.

“I’ve been building this for about three years, trying to figure it out,” she said. “Finally, we’re open. And we’re very excited.”

She’s running the business as a family effort, with her son Alberto helping out on weekends while balancing school.

Savia Cafe launched with a soft opening in early February, and Angeles said the first couple of weeks have been encouraging. Since this is her first business, she’s taking a slow, thoughtful approach — while focusing on providing the best service possible.

“We just decided to open the doors, and we haven’t done any advertising yet,” she said. “People see us and stop in. We’re just trying to create a great experience.”

Angeles said she’s been looking for the right space for years, and Geneva was always where she wanted to land. As a South Elgin resident, she’s always loved the Tri-Cities area.

And while the Geneva Metra station location is already convenient for commuters, she’s thinking even bigger.

Angeles said she hopes to eventually add a walk-up style window facing the platform — something that could make it easier for train riders to grab coffee just before hopping onto a train.

“We’d love to add that in the future,” she said. “It would be a huge help to people waiting for their trains.”

Right now, Savia offers the familiar cafe basics — lattes, cappuccinos, and regular coffee — but Angeles said she also wants the menu to reflect more of her own background.

She’s originally from Jalisco, Mexico, and moved to the United States about 20 years ago.

Eventually, she hopes Savia can become a place where locals can discover Mexican drinks and flavors that aren’t common in the Tri-Cities cafe scene.

“We have a few Mexican items right now,” she said. “Eventually I want to add more Mexican menu items and products so people can experience our culture.”

One of the items she’s most excited about is her café de olla, a traditional Mexican coffee that her team makes fresh in-house.

“We make the coffee here fresh every morning… it’s really good,” she said.

They are also serving agua fresca-style drinks and specialty teas, which she described as completely natural and organic — they just add honey. 

One thing that makes Savia feel different from a typical cafe is how the space is strategically designed around grab-and-go options.

Angeles described it as similar to a mini market for commuters. Beyond the seating area, there’s an area where someone catching a train can grab a canned drink, a pastry, a packaged sandwich, or something quick without needing to make another stop.

“I am trying to stock some of the essentials so people can grab them without having to go out of their way to another store,” she said.

The current menu includes a mix of pastries, cookies, and sweets from different cultures — Mexican, Italian, Lebanese, and more — with plans to eventually make more items fresh on-site.

Even though Savia is currently set up as a smaller, quick-stop cafe, Angeles said she doesn’t want it to feel like a place where you rush in and rush out.

She wants to create an atmosphere where people feel comfortable enough to stay for a while, whether they’re working on a laptop, waiting for a train, or just looking for an inviting place to gather.

“When our customers are spending time here, they should feel like they are home,” she said. “But if they just want to grab a coffee and go, they can do that too.”

So far, that vision is slowly becoming a reality. She said that not only are people discovering the space, she loves seeing them sit down, chat, and hang out for a while. 

Right now, Savia is open daily from 6AM-8PM, and Angeles said she’s still figuring out what makes the most sense from a business standpoint.

But longer term, she hopes to expand both the space and the hours — possibly staying open later into the evening through dinner hours once the cafe is ready for it.

Eventually, she’d like to add more tables, build out more of the interior, and even host events after 5PM.

“We have a lot of big plans for Savia Cafe,” she said. “But we’re going to start slow, do it bit by bit.”

Her hope is to start rolling out more of those additions by summer — including more fresh food and more Mexican drinks made with real fruit.

For now, Savia is still in its early days, but it’s already shaping up to be a unique new addition to the Geneva community.

For further updates from Savia Cafe, follow them on Instagram.

Please feel free to reach out to [email protected] with questions or comments.

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