Never Too Latte- San Francisco, San Francisco

As Charles Kusuma was coming up in the restaurant and hotel industry, his mother—who had long hoped to own her own cafe—kept him grounded with a simple piece of advice: always treat your guest as your friend. When she passed away, Charles decided to pursue her dream in her honor. He rescued a local cafe from closing, and reopened it on his mother's birthday in 2010 as Never Too Latte, complete with a business mantra that would make her proud: "Enter as strangers, leave as friends."

From the red-velvet mochas to the boxes of macarons baked by Charles's wife, Sheila, most things at Never Too Latte have a personal touch. You can even stay well into lunch and dinnertime, as the menu features chicken-apple sausages, kettle chips, and sandwiches.