Back in February 2022, a candy-apple-red food truck made its first appearance at east-side food truck park The Pit. The truck, decorated with stickers and chalkboard menus, was dedicated to serving coffee with a sweet twist.
Rain or shine, customers could count on Cuppa Gogo to be parked at The Pit, where they could indulge in flavors like tres leches, horchata and cinnamon toast crunch, topped with their signature swirly whipped cream.
With their unique flavors and friendly baristas, Cuppa Gogo has skyrocketed. Some customers make the trip from Marana just to start their mornings at the beloved red truck.
Now, Cuppa Gogo is moving on up — and into a building at 4877 E. Speedway.
Cuppa Gogo opened its first brick-and-mortar at 4877 E. Speedway in November.
Cuppa Gogo opened its brick-and-mortar earlier this month. Co-owner Emery Van Gilder said her husband Hilario, who is also an owner, was the driving force behind getting the building.
“We want to grow, we want Cuppa Gogos to be in every single part of the city,” Van Gilder said. “We love our product so much and we think that everyone would too. I want everyone to try it.”
Cuppa Gogo started out as an idea among high school friends. Van Gilder, along with her husband and two other friends from high school, saw that Prest Coffee was selling its truck, sparking an idea about starting a coffee business.
After learning from Prest’s owner about how the trailer worked, and all the ins and outs of French press coffee, the white trailer was turned into the bright-red one that Tucson has come to know and love.
Cuppa Gogo's bright-red truck sits at The Pit.
Aside from their French press coffee, Cuppa Gogo also makes their own syrups from scratch. Since Van Gilder is a pastry chef, she made it a point to create her own delicious concoctions.
“When we first started, we only had three flavors … But then after a while I started running out of ideas,” Van Gilder said. “I started asking for feedback from customers like, hey, is there a flavor you'd want to see? I get a lot of wild ideas from customers. It's like a challenge. It's very fun for me to try to figure it out.”
A gingerbread latte is one of the drinks on Cuppa Gogo’s holiday menu.
Thanks to the minds of customers and Van Gilder, Cuppa Gogo has pretty much every flavor under the sun. Banana cream pie, butter pecan, gingerbread, butterbeer and mazapan are just a few flavors that Cuppa Gogo offers. They even once had a pickle lemonade that many customers ask Van Gilder to bring back.
After gaining a following at The Pit, Van Gilder and her husband decided to take the next step: opening up a brick-and-mortar. On East Speedway sat an old golf shop for sale, which eventually transformed into Cuppa Gogo a year later.
With help from family and friends, Van Gilder was able to bring the magic of the truck into the new shop. Bean bags and comfy couches fill the shop along with Arizona-themed murals and many board games.
Obviously their signature red is featured around the store and the chalkboard menus are on full display. They even have a huge metal Cuppa Gogo sign covered in stickers, paying homage to their sticker-covered napkin dispenser at the truck.
At their new building, Cuppa Gogo has a big metal sign that pays homage to the sticker-covered napkin dispenser at their truck.
“We wanted a place that would be super chill, like, we call it comfy loud,” Van Gilder said. “It's like a house when everyone's there and talking and laughing. It's loud but you're so cozy and comfy.”
There’s even a music corner where you can show off your talents by singing, playing the piano or the guitar. If you’re good enough, you may be rewarded with a free drink.
Cuppa Gogo officially opened their doors on Nov. 18 and rolled out the red carpet for their customers (literally!). Many of their loving customers showed up to support, causing workers to communicate via walkie talkies to make sure they were keeping up with the demand, Van Gilder said.
“It was wild,” Van Gilder said. “It was really nice to see everybody hanging out, playing games and talking to each other.”
Despite expanding to a new place, Van Gilder and the rest of the Cuppa Gogo gang continue to make connections with customers and pipe the prettiest whipped cream you’ll ever see, striving to provide the community with a fun place to hang out while sipping on a gingerbread latte.
“I love the vibe here,” Van Gilder said. “Like I said, it's just like home.”
Cuppa Gogo is located at 4877 E. Speedway and open 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily. Their truck at The Pit, 7889 E. 22nd St., is also open 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily.
