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5S Café
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5S Café is everything you want a neighbourhood coffee spot to be — warm, dotted with curios, suffused with the scent of rich brews and baked goods, and (perhaps most importantly), run by people who see you as a person, and not just another latte.
Above the counter at 5S Café there’s a puzzle depicting famed Mexican painter Frida Kahlo. The owner doesn’t hail from Mexico, and though she admires Kahlo’s work, isn’t an overly zealous fan. As with everything in the quaint café, the puzzle’s placement is highly personal. It’s a reminder of a dark time for Sahar Delmoradi — of the struggle, but also the strength that saw her through to the other side.
With no English and a gaggle of children, Delmoradi arrived in Canada in 2017. Reflecting on the road that has brought her to this point, the words “scared,” “hard,” and “challenge” weave their way into the conversation. So do “kindness,” “hope,” and “success.”
“Right now,” she beams “I am so blessed.”
Delmoradi’s flair for baking began, unusually, with a faint interest in pursuing a career as a make-up artist. If you imagine a scone as a fresh face awaiting its close-up, it’s not hard to see the jump. Delmoradi brings the same eye for colour, style and perfection to her baking as she must have done to every face she made up.
It was during the pandemic that Delmoradi turned her attention to online baking courses. Clearly an A student, she was soon constructing elaborate, multi-tiered cakes festooned with edible flowers, dramatic isomalt décor, and more. But the business of making cakes for high-stress events, such as weddings, wasn’t for her.
Out of a rented kitchen, Delmoradi then began baking scones for a local coffee shop. Made with pure butter, cream, fresh fruit and a delicate touch, the scones proved to be exactly what the city craved.
“They worked so well,” says Delmoradi. “They sold so good, people loved them.” At the height of their popularity, 500 pieces a week found their way from Delmoradi’s to customers’ hands.
“When I started,” explains Delmoradi. “I was a teeny tiny person with lots of hope. But business is different. When people start to do business, their mentality changes.” The partnership fell through but, thankfully, the story of the scones had just begun.
“For me it was lots of good experience,” she adds. “I learned that I can do it. It was a good start. If I can sell there, I can sell by myself.”
So, beginning on November 11th, 2023, that’s exactly what Delmoradi did. She turned her attention to a drab spot on Denison Avenue, working to infuse the room with life, charm, and a feeling not unlike her sunny personality.
“I painted, I decorated, I bought this table, that counter. My friend brought that table with chairs. I did everything,” laughs Delmoradi. As for the name? Delmoradi found it in her family’s affection for names beginning with the letter “s”.
At 5S Café, Delmoradi bakes her superb scones on-site, each morning. Few things in life beat a baked good plucked directly from a cooling rack, then plated for you to enjoy.
A sweet and savoury selection ranges from blueberry, fig, raspberry and strawberry to bacon and onion, truffle and mushroom, cheddar jalapeño and feta and spinach. Sweet scones hold a core of house-made jam while savoury offerings find a lavish amount of ingredients held together by buttery bites of dough. For service, scones are capped off with a generous butter ruffle and a fresh garnish then placed gingerly onto one of the café’s antique China plates.
A rotating menu of treats means that 5S Café’s pastry case is never empty. Delmoradi also makes velvety brownies, topped with raspberry jam, hazelnut spread and orange zest, or caramel and walnuts. Focaccia will be joining the lineup soon.
On particularly good days, you’ll step inside to find saffron cake among the offerings. Inspired by home, the recipe relies on almond flour, rosewater and saffron syrup for its downy texture, fragrance, and sunny colour. Superlatively moist and aromatic, the cake is sweet enough to feel like a treat, without being cloying. Restrained and elegant, with a lofty crown of sweetened whipped cream, it easily reveals the extent of Delmoradi’s skills.
Behind the counter, Delmoradi’s son, Sobhan, pulls espressos, deftly topping warm drinks with latte art, from swans to hearts and tulips. Made with beans from Pirates of Coffee, which are also for sale on-site, the café’s coffee is smooth and balanced. The menu touches on all the must-haves, from Americanos and cappuccinos to caramel macchiatos.
For the sweet-toothed, hot chocolate is an essential order. Blended with cocoa powder, both milk and 70% Valrhona chocolate, it’s the ultimate frothy, rich pour.
With an upbeat soundtrack and free wi-fi, 5S Café fits as easily into busy afternoons as it does leisurely mornings. It’s a place that buzzes with activity one moment, then slows, proffering visitors with the ephemeral gift of quiet escape.
“This business is not just for me,” explains Delmoradi. “This business is for my son, for my daughters. They need me but they accept that I need to do this to try to make the future better for them. If I stay home, nothing changes.”
S5 Café, she fails to mention, is also for everyone who’s ever wished that their daily caffeine fix came with a heaping dose of heart and a killer scone (or two). “When I see people are happy when they are leaving, that’s the most powerful thing.”
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