As one walks into CoCol, an immediate warmth is felt as the Mexican American décor gives a homey feel, and the beautifully decorated altar dedicated to the owner’s late loved ones lets customers know of the love that radiates through the restaurant.

Lizbeth Carlos has run and owned CoCol for three years now. She had a vision of opening her own coffee shop from as young as 17 years old. When it first opened, her expectations were something “chill,” but the coffeehouse has succeeded far past that.

CoCol is named after one of the oldest types of Mexican bread, which was created during the Spanish conquest and is still eaten centuries later.

“CoCol comes from my grandpa. When I was little, he used to sit at the table and tell my grandma, ‘Dame mi cocol,’ and she would set up his bread and coffee,” Carlos said. “For me, CoCol is for making my family proud and telling our story—to make a stance here.”

The altar at the entrance of the restaurant holds decorated frames of Carlos’ grandparents and her late sister Teresa Carlos, who was also known as Tree. Their lives are nothing short of being celebrated with the vibrant and intentional flowers, candles and offerings placed on the altar.

“My younger sister—Tree. We built this together,” Carlos said.

Carlos’ love for her family translates into the love she puts into her drinks and dishes.It keeps her connected to her roots.

“The menu—it’s not Mexican, it’s not American, it’s not Italian. It’s just what I came up with. My love language is food, and I just want to make people happy with it,” Carlos said. “A large part was I used to cook for my family, friends, and they’d be like, ‘Wow this is so good.’ I just started creating from there.”

The coffee aspect of CoCol comes from Carlos’ long barista career, which started when she was 18 years old. Owning her own coffee house allows her to explore flavor combinations with more liberty and creativity.

“I would have drink inventions in my head, and I couldn’t just bring them out. I had to wait and wait. Our Mazapan latte—I created that years ago [at a different location], and now I brought it to CoCol,” Carlos said.

Carlos’ vision for CoCol continues to grow due to their environment, food options and drink combinations. The goal is to bring a community together through the love language Carlos has kept alive throughout her life.  

“We have old, we have young, we have all kinds, and I think that’s one of the things that I want CoCol to be. Just a place for anybody and everybody that wants to have a good coffee and some good food,” Carlos said.

CoCol’s employees also acknowledge the love and community behind Carlos’ vision. Manager Angela Caro, 24, was drawn to work there through her initial love of the coffee house.

“I started working at CoCol after me and my sister visited a few times and loved everything. I went ahead and emailed the owner [Carlos] and started a week later,” Caro said.

Caro has seen herself the type of people and energy the coffee house brings in and says it’s a diverse group of visitors.

“The demographic here is very diverse. Socorro locals grab coffee, college students and lots of families enjoy a meal together. We also have tourists, book clubs and church groups,” Caro said.

At the end of the day, Carlos pushes her family’s legacy through her passions and old traditions at CoCol, excitedly anticipating customers both new and old.

Jesie Garcia is the arts and culture editor and may be reached at [email protected] or on Instagram @jeslorenwrites.