""Before we had coffee machines and frothers, you needed to get air into your beverages," says Thomas. "Most of the people who do it are taller than I am and have longer arms. So their arm actually goes up to a meter. I don't know if my wingspan is that large. We try to get it as far as we can.""
"'For every chaya kada, there's a community that is built with it,' says Thomas."
"'I have a 4-year-old,' says Thomas."
Chayakada in San Jose operates a Kerala-style chai cafe that pours traditional meter-long streams of frothy tea. Owner Aleena Thomas prepares tea using long, theatrical pours to introduce air into beverages, reflecting older chai-making techniques that predate coffee machines and frothers. Chai kadas originated in 19th-century Kerala around Munnar tea plantations and became neighborhood hubs fostering social and political discourse and easing caste barriers through intermingling. Chayakada is open Wednesday through Monday with specific hours and offers a mini library, foosball, board games, carrom, and a Bring-Your-Own-Boardgame policy to encourage multigenerational community gatherings.
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