Faith, family, and flavor: Manna Café serves up sweet success in Panama City

PANAMA CITY, Fla. (WJHG/WECP) - Before customers take their first sip or bite, the gentle fragrance of incense sets the tone inside Manna Café.

Husband-and-wife owners Yanet Nieto and Gonzalo Zurita opened the doors to their Panama City coffee shop in May, blending their Hispanic roots with heartfelt hospitality. For the couple, the shop’s identity begins with its name, inspired by Exodus 16:15.

“It is the bread of life that God gives us as food, and it is feeding both our spirit and our stomach,” Nieto said.

Bringing the café to life required months of relentless dedication. While balancing their existing full-time careers during the day, the couple spent late nights building every inch of the storefront themselves.

“Every night we used to come together, because we built it ourselves with our own hands,” Nieto said. “It’s all built—every little bit was made by us. We thought of it, we designed everything ourselves, and we made it with our own hands.”

Beyond traditional coffee drinks and international roasts, Manna Café features a menu tailored to health, cleanliness, and inclusive dietary needs. Nieto’s personal allergies to pork and gluten shaped the kitchen’s offerings, creating a safe dining haven that is completely free of pork and offers fresh, made-to-order gluten-free paninis.

“We have fresh paninis, they’re made on the spot, no gluten, no pork, in any form,” Nieto said. “And really, a lot of people have connected with me on the allergies.”

The couple’s attention to detail quickly sparked attention online. Viral social media videos and consistent five-star customer reviews have drawn travelers from across the nation and even abroad.

“They’ve come from Wisconsin, California, Georgia,” Zurita said. “Also, a family from Japan, visiting Panama City, and based on the reviews, they stopped here.”

For other patrons, the authentic flavors provide an emotional link to their heritage and past travels.

“A Cuban family who had lived in Russia said the coffee here transported them to Russia,” Zurita shared. “It’s so nice to see that part—the feeling of being taken to a place or an experience they had in the past just by having something here.”

Despite being open for only four months, Manna Café has already received back-to-back community recognition awards based on online ratings.

“We pour our heart and soul into this so that ten or twenty years down the road, we can say all those tears bore fruit—bringing joy to so many people, and of course, to us and our families,” Nieto said.

For Nieto and Zurita, the goal extends far beyond selling coffee: it is about ensuring every guest feels welcomed, accepted, and loved. With community support surpassing their expectations, the couple is already preparing to host local events showcasing community talent and is eyeing a second location in the future.

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