When Latte’s Café first opened in a converted church in Paget three miles out of town, the operators marketed it as a hidden gem.

“It was a hideout from the traffic,” said manager Royce Bulatao. “It was also a way to avoid the more crowded cafés in town.”

Four years later, the eatery, which offers lattes, sandwiches, pastries and croffles (a croissant-waffle hybrid), among other things, is seriously challenging the definition of “hidden”.

At 10am on a weekday, the car park at 19 Chapel Road is mostly full with more vehicles parked along the nearby verge.

People bring their dogs in for “puppuchinos” and sit outside. Other clients work on laptops, sip coffees or chat with friends.

Latte’s Café is busier than ever today, but is still a haven from the madding crowd.

“During the week, people often stop in on their way to Hamilton,” Mr Bulatao said. “Sometimes parents come in after dropping their children off at school. Sometimes they come in and end up staying for an hour, waiting for the traffic rush to be over.”

The café is open from 7am to 8pm, Monday to Thursday. It closes an hour earlier on Fridays and then opens on Sunday from 10am to 6pm.

Mr Bulatao believes the restaurant’s later weekday hours help to fill a gap in the market.

“There are not many cafés in Bermuda open as late as we are,” Mr Bulatao said. “People come in the evening and still wish we were open until 9pm. They start chatting with friends and lose track of time.”

Latte’s Café is coming into its own. In 2025, it won its first Best of Bermuda award from the Bermudian magazine for Best Cup of Java.

“There are a lot of coffee shops in Bermuda,” Mr Bulatao said. “That was big for us.”

The store is owned by Lynn and Martin Hassell, who run Hasco’s Hardware and Hasco’s Design Concierge business.

“When we started, the hardware store was in here,” Mr Bulatao said. “Now that has moved to Southampton, and we work alongside Hasco’s Design. The two businesses swapped places.”

Mr Bulatao is from Manila, in the Philippines. He first came to Bermuda in 2006 to work for another local restaurant. He went home for a few years to earn a master’s degree in business before opening his own café on a university campus.

Then the Covid-19 pandemic hit in 2020. Schools and universities were closed for two years, so he had to close his business.

Then in 2022, he heard from a friend in Bermuda that the Hassells were looking for someone to open and run a small café as an arm to their hardware store. He applied and got the job.

In addition to expanding the menu, he also added retail, selling items such as air fryers, karaoke kits and skincare products.

“I tend to stock what is trending on TikTok,” he said.

He also rents out the space for small parties and offers catering.

The café also offers events.

“On Wednesday nights from 4pm onwards, we do karaoke nights,” the manager said. “It acts as a counterbalance to Harbour Nights in Hamilton. If you are local and don’t want to deal with the crowds, you can come here. It runs all year.”

This year, Mr Bulatao’s goal is to expand the menu even further, offering gluten-free and vegetarian options.

“One of our biggest challenges is manpower,” he said. “Our customer base is growing, and we have four staff members to run the place from 7am to 8pm.”