Skip to main content
Honey Latte Cafe undergoes a vibe shift after 6 pm.
The 3,000-square-foot Central Eastside coffee shop moonlights as a small-scale, all-ages music venue. Vintage couches, board games, and a book-filled vending machine are pushed aside to set the stage for that night’s performance—metaphorically speaking. They don’t have a stage yet. But… they’re working on it.
Cafe founder and co-owner Angelyna Tropets has been working as a DIY booking agent under “Honey Latte Presents” since 2017. Honey Latte has hosted performances ranging from indie groups like Laundry to edgy rock names like Chainsaw Girl to larger acts like Luna Luna.
The room fits 50 people. “Sometimes it’s young 16-year-old punk kids who are wearing furry things and rainbows and all these cool outfits,” Tropets says. “And then other times it’s like…people’s grandparents.”
Tropets started her business by popping up at random Portland markets with a mini espresso machine. She’s now co-owned Honey Latte Cafe with her husband, Deniz Aydemir, and Luke Nimtz since 2021. They plan to open another location and a separate, larger music venue sometime this year.
But only elite Portlanders (that is, those who follow Honey Latte on Instagram) know about the cafe’s third identity: the houseplant exchange.
Honey Latte’s most recent January “plant swap” invited guests to bring their own plants, cuttings and props. Walking in, patrons were greeted by Tropets, her friend, Sierra Rollers (the brains behind the plant swap idea), and, most importantly, two tables full of plant cuttings in labeled jars. Rollers had scissors, so that whenever someone brought in a new plant, other swappers could take (and swap) cuttings while sipping on a honey lavender latte.
“It’s just been a really fun way to meet people,” Tropets says. “Because like…if you love plants and another person loves plants…I just feel like that’s an immediate friendship.”
Tropets and Rollers also vended vintage clothing and art, respectively, at the last swap. So they figured why not add a couple more DIY vendors to the mix, and turn the next event into a combination plant swap and night market? And so Honey Latte Ca and Fueled By Plants will host their first-ever plant swap and night market from 4 to 8 pm Sunday, Feb. 19.