In the Book Ventanitas, Miami's Coffee Culture Is Explored Through Interviews and Photos

There are few things more synonymous with Miami than a tiny window attached to restaurants and cafés that dishes out cafecitos all day long. It’s a place where people congregate to talk shop, politics, or just straight shoot the shit with a stranger. Everyone is welcome at a ventanita. And, if you’re lucky enough, the ladies behind the window might take a liking to you and learn your name and coffee order.

These windows are embedded into the culture of the Magic City. After all, Cuban coffee fuels Miami, and that coffee tastes best when it comes from a ventanita.

In honor of this cultural staple, O, Miami is publishing a coffee-table book aptly titled Ventanitas: A Window Into Miami's Coffee Culture. Written by Daniela Perez Miron and photographed by Gesi Schilling, the book is scheduled for release on March 5.

Perez Miron was born in Guatemala and grew up in Miami. It wasn’t until three years ago that she embarked across the pond to get her master's in graphic design in London. It was there that she first had the idea to write a book about Miami’s café culture. She was inspired after reading an article that advised patrons not to congregate at these café windows due to COVID restrictions. Perez Miron found the story humorous and told her British peers, none of whom understood why it was funny.

“They had no idea what I was talking about,” she laughs, adding how she recognized she was the issue. “It was a classic Miamian mistake, underestimating how special and unique the city is until you leave,” the designer says, speaking to New Times via Zoom from her London flat.
The idea for Ventanitas flourished from there. Perez Miron began to put together a list and coordinated a bevy of interviews. She first spoke with local food writer Carlos Frias and Felipe Valls Jr., owner of Versailles, for guidance, two men whom she says she is eternally grateful for their counsel.

"The more I spoke to people, the more I realized how special and interesting [ventanitas were], not just visually, but the stories are what kind of kept me coming back and encouraged me to keep going," she explains.

Nearly every neighborhood was shown some love. There are the classics like Versailles, Islas Canarias, Enriqueta’s, and even Mary’s Coin Laundry. And then there are more obscure finds like Boia De (yes, the Michelin-starred Italian restaurant) and the now-closed All Day.

Once her initial draft was submitted, Perez Miron enlisted the help of O, Miami to bring this special slice of Miami to proper fruition.

“It was so reassuring,” says Perez Miron of working with P. Scott Cunningham and his team at O, Miami. “When working with a local publisher, they already knew how special the story was, and I didn’t need to try to convince anyone of why the book should be made.”
The O, Miami team certainly knew what a gem a book about Miami’s coffee culture would be, which is why they enlisted the help of photographer and Miami native Gesi Schilling.

As you’re nearing the corner of NE 29th St. and Second Ave. in Edgewater, the smell of freshly baked Cuban bread seeps into your car. The intoxicating scent only gets stronger as you approach Enriqueta’s Sandwich Shop. While the spot is known for its sandwiches (clearly), the ventanita is a neighborhood treasure trove. It’s covered in stickers and makeshift printed signs that read “No pets allowed” or “Minimum credit card purchase.” And, in true ventanita fashion, there’s a large water cooler by the open window.

A couple leans on the ledge of the window pane, patiently waiting for their order.

Schilling arrives and heads inside. While her go-to ventanita order might be just a standard colada, today she’s enjoying a proper sit-down lunch consisting of pollo a la plancha with a side of café con leche.

“I feel so lucky to have gotten to be the one to go and take pictures [for this project],” says the seasoned photographer as she takes a seat inside Enriqueta's. “I got to meet amazing people and drink coffee and eat delicious food. It was fantastic."
Schilling spent the summer months of 2023 driving up and down South Florida to document these windows. The original list she was handed contained a little under two dozen spots. As Schilling was driving around Miami juiced up on coffee, she says, “I was coming across so many others that I had to stop [and photograph them].”

In the end, Ventanitas features 50 windows with 15 unique interviews and various poems sprinkled throughout the 245-page book.

While the initial assignment was to photograph just windows, Schilling began to notice that there was so much more to each place than just the small square where they sell cups of coffee and pastries.

“As I started shooting, I went beyond the window,” Schilling says.

She captured the essence of what makes the space so special, including the people who come to these windows, the neighborhoods they’re in, and the people behind the windows.

These ventanitas are a gathering place for the community. “When you’re at a window, it just makes you feel like you're immediately a part of something,” says the photographer. “You're part of the fabric of the city. It’s so welcoming. I mean, it’s literally an open window.”

Ventanitas: A Window Into Miami's Coffee Culture. By Daniela Perez Miron and Gesi Schilling. O, Miami. 245 pages. Hardcover, $58.

Ventanitas Book Panel. 5 to 7 p.m. Sunday, March 3, at Books & Books, 265 Aragon Ave., Coral Gables; 305-442-4408; booksandbooks.com. Admission is free with RSVP via eventbrite.com.

Ventanitas Launch Party. 5 to 7 p.m. Tuesday, March 5, at Versailles, 3555 SW Eighth St., Miami; versaillesrestaurant.com. Admission is free with RSVP via eventbrite.com.