CHAI LIFE
David Rio's retail café, David Rio Chai Bar, opened its doors in May 2015 on the ground floor of a historic building at 1019 Market Street in San Francisco. With a rustic yet modern interior incorporating wood, granite, steel, and brick, the 2,600 square foot Chai Bar serves a range of David Rio Chai products, as well as organic, fair trade coffee, house-made tea infused enticements, and craft beers and wines on tap. East meets West as the menu serves unique Japanese inspired foods, classic café fare, and aromatic Caramel Cookie Waffles, known as "stroopwafels," using David Rio's signature Tiger Spice Chai® as an ingredient. One of the unique elements of the space is the Chai Lab, where customers can try new products and recipes in development and provide immediate comments and feedback.
In addition to offering exceptional service and superb products, Chai Bar by David Rio stands behind protecting endangered, at risk, or vulnerable animals. This commitment is also reflected in the names of its chai products served and David Rio's donations to the International Fund for Animal Welfare's (IFAW) tiger and elephant initiatives. Donations made to IFAW aid in the rescue and rehabilitation of orphaned tigers worldwide and the preservation of 1,400 elephants in the Amboseli National Park region of Southern Kenya. Click here to learn more about David Rio's commitment to animal welfare.
Chai Bar by David Rio's passion for animals is also reflected in its logo of a strong, beautiful Bengal tiger. We look forward to sharing our passion and creativity with the local and global community at Chai Bar by David Rio, one cup of chai at a time.
Chai Cart®, was founded by Paawan Kothari in 2009, and has its roots in San Francisco's street food culture. Paawan grew up in India and came to the US in the mid-nineties to pursue a degree in Computer Science. She has 10+ years of experience working with small and large technology firms in Silicon Valley and an MBA from INSEAD, France. In the summer of 2009, Paawan began peddling chai over the weekends while working at IBM during the week. At the time, the underground street-food movement was starting to grow and gain popularity in San Francisco and she saw the opportunity to recreate old memories from her experience in India where chai is the fabric of social life. Chai Cart® started off as a hobby but the customers kept coming back for more and so eventually she quit her job and took up The Chai Cart® full time. In 2018, Chai Cart® joined forces with David Rio.