By Jericho Saria
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SAN JOSE, California (KGO) — When Frank Nguyen launched Academic Coffee in downtown San Jose nearly a decade ago, his goal was simple: bring a great neighborhood cafe to a city that didn’t have many. He couldn’t have imagined that nine years later, his small-batch, from-scratch approach would make him a national trendsetter — all thanks to a banana.
Last October, Nguyen and his team at Academic Coffee introduced what would become their signature creation: the Banana Cream Pie Latte. “Originally, we were trying to come up with a different drink for the holidays,” Nguyen recalls. “We did all this testing for it, and we actually gave up on that drink. But we created this base cream, and our head culinary expert said, hey, can I try something? She added banana to our cream base, and the whole team loved it.”
The silky blend of cream, fresh bananas, and a few secret ingredients reminded Nguyen of a banana cream pie, and he suggested a “crust” dusting of Biscoff cookie crumbles. The drink was an immediate hit with Academic’s regulars, who demanded Nguyen keep the drink on the menu past the holidays.
Nguyen says that around the end of December and the beginning of January, he noticed lines suddenly forming out the door. “We were talking to the new customers and they’re like, oh, we saw you on TikTok,” recalls Nguyen. “We had no idea.” He and his team went to Tiktok to see for themselves, and found post after post about their drink, which had amassed tens of thousands of views.
Indeed, the internet had discovered Academic Coffee. TikTokers filmed their first sips, posted reviews, and shared the cafe’s signature look: creamy lattes topped with banana-colored foam and cookie sprinkles. “So good!” one user declared. “They make their own banana cream with fresh bananas, so you don’t get that artificial taste,” narrated another, as she sipped on a banana cream matcha latte (which has become more popular than the original espresso-based drink, Nguyen notes).
In April of 2025, Nguyen’s team, overwhelmed by the demand, halted production of the drink. TikTokers posted sad-song video lamentations and calls-to-action to get the drink before it was gone. “We just couldn’t make enough banana,” Nguyen admits. “People were just getting upset that we were sold out. It was burning out our team. So we took a short break, retrofitted our kitchens to accommodate more bananas, and then brought it back.”
During that pause, the banana latte trend spread, as coffee and beverage shops in California and across the country introduced similar banana cream-based drinks. The ABC News data journalism team tracked the term “banana cream latte” on Google, and while there were some small results through 2023 and 2024-Dutch Bros. Coffee introduced a similar drink a year prior-the viral wave didn’t crest until January 2025, when Academic Coffee’s version took off. “While they can’t claim that they created it,” says ABC News data journalist Frank Esposito, “Academic Coffee is likely the cause of the viral sensation of the banana cream latte.”
Nguyen takes it all in stride. “I even saw it at Disneyland,” he says with a laugh. Tipped off by a customer, Nguyen took his daughter to Disneyland before the start of the school year and went straight for the drink. “I tried it-I thought it was too sweet. But it’s all good. We’re happy to have helped do something big in the Bay Area.”
The sudden visibility of Academic Coffee has led to even more beverage innovation. Collaborating with food influencer Eatsbyrachel, Academic recently introduced the guava matcha latte, a vibrant drink layered with homemade guava jam, matcha latte, guava cream, and a dusting of li hing powder. Nguyen admits the new drink is outselling their banana drink, but notes that it will only be a seasonal offering.
As one year passes for Academic’s banana cream pie latte, Nguyen reflects on the years of maintaining uncompromising quality that has brought him to this moment: “After nine years of working in coffee,” Nguyen says, “it’s rewarding to see that people finally know who we are.”
This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate partner and does not contain original CNN reporting.
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