About Koffee Paradise and Founder Fidas Timbuleng
Koffee Paradise is a female-owned Filipino coffee shop founded by Fidas Timbuleng. It started with one question: why does Ohio not have a Filipino coffee shop?
Koffee Paradise at a Glance
| Founder | Fidas Timbuleng, with her husband Eric |
|---|---|
| Type | Female-owned Filipino-inspired coffee shop |
| Claim to fame | The first Filipino coffee shop in Ohio, home of the best ube latte |
| First shop | 6308 E Main St, Columbus, near Reynoldsburg |
| Locations | East Main Street, Worthington and soon near Ohio State |
| Coffee roaster | Crimson Cup, Columbus |
Fidas Timbuleng did not set out to open a coffee shop. Her husband, Eric, kept telling her she should. When she finally looked into it, she noticed something missing: there was no Filipino coffee shop anywhere in Ohio.
Meet Fidas Timbuleng, Founder of Koffee Paradise
Fidas is Filipino, and she built Koffee Paradise around the cafe culture she grew up with. In the Philippines, she has explained, coffee shops are designed to be beautiful, bright and different from one another. People go to them to spend time, not only to grab a drink. That is why the original shop on East Main Street is filled with live plants and looks more like an island porch than a typical strip-mall cafe.
You will often find her behind the counter. Reviews mention her by her nickname, Fee, and describe an owner who explains every drink, offers samples and greets people by name.
Why It Is Called Koffee Paradise
The couple first wanted to call it Coffee Island, after the island nations the couple come from, the Philippines and Indonesia. The name was already taken. Koffee Paradise kept the same feeling, a little escape in a cup, and the K made it their own.
Why Ube Is at the Heart of the Koffee Paradise Menu
Of all the drinks on the menu, the ube latte inspired Fidas most. Ube is the purple yam at the center of Filipino desserts, and a properly made Filipino-style ube latte was close to impossible to find in Ohio. It became the drink people now cross the city for, followed by the ube dalgona and the matcha with ube cloud. Every ube drink and price is on the Koffee Paradise menu, and our Filipino coffee guide explains the flavors behind them.
Koffee Paradise Timeline
The idea
Eric encourages Fidas to open a cafe. She decides it should be Filipino, because Ohio does not have one.
The name
They want Coffee Island, a nod to the Philippines and Indonesia, where the couple are from. It is taken, so it becomes Koffee Paradise.
East Main Street
The first shop opens at 6308 E Main St, near Reynoldsburg, with ube lattes, live plants and an island-style interior.
Summer 2026
A second shop opens on West Dublin-Granville Road in the Linworth area of Worthington.
2026
A third shop is announced for 1333 N High St near Ohio State, with a kitchen for Filipino pastries.
Each shop has its own character. See the original shop on East Main Street, the Worthington shop in Linworth and the upcoming University District shop.
What Koffee Paradise Stands For
Fidas puts it simply: Koffee Paradise is not just a coffee shop, it is a place where community gathers. In practice that means three things.
| Belonging | A room where students, families and remote workers all feel welcome to stay. |
|---|---|
| Filipino flavor | Drinks and pastries that introduce Filipino coffee culture to Central Ohio. |
| Quiet giving | Local jobs and support for charities, done without making a show of it. |
Where Koffee Paradise Gets Its Coffee
Our beans come from Crimson Cup, a Columbus roastery that has worked with independent Ohio cafes since 1991. Fidas is also looking at ways to bring in coffee grown in the Philippines, a country best known among coffee drinkers for kapeng barako, the bold Liberica coffee of Batangas.
Want to reach Fidas about catering, a collaboration or press? Use the contact page.