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Maya Café fuses culture, cuisine, and community in Winter Park
In a building near the intersection of Howell Branch Road and Lake Howell road in Winter Park’s Hannibal Square neighborhood, a family of three generations has created something altogether different: a café-gallery hybrid that blends homemade food, original artwork, and a deep sense of cultural identity.
Maya Café Lounge and Gallery was founded by Leticia Gil, her daughter Letty Vallve, and granddaughter Celeste Aguinaga. Artist and co-owner Celeste named the café after her youngest sister, Maya. The family-run space has been open for three years and serves as both a restaurant and a community gallery, featuring work from Orlando-based artists, with a focus on showcasing women.
The family emigrated from Venezuela to Orlando in 2006 and initially worked in the car industry, a line of work they found emotionally draining.
“It was miserable,” Celeste said. “Car dealerships are not a place where customers are happy because you’re dealing with repossession. So we wanted to do something that brought the community together instead of leaching off of people.”
When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, they decided to pursue their shared passion for art. Without enough funds to open a traditional gallery, they envisioned a space that could merge multiple experiences. They wanted a place where people could view and buy art, eat homemade meals, and feel welcome.
They renovated the building themselves. They built the walls and bar, painted the floor by hand, and added a resin layer to preserve the work beneath.
“We said, ‘Hey, how do you build a bar?’ and we YouTubed it,” Celeste said. “We burnt the wood ourselves, the floor is all handpainted, and then on top we put a layer of resin just to preserve the paint, but everything underneath was done on our hands and knees.”
Letty Vallve created the menu, drawing on family recipes. The café offers breakfast, lunch, and dinner, along with natural juices, cheese boards, desserts, and a selection of alcoholic drinks. All meals are made with care and served lovingly on heart-shaped plates.
The design and atmosphere reflect a mix of Venezuelan, Mexican, and American cultural influences.
“You go to coffee shops a lot of the time, and they are very almost hospital-like with how minimalistic they are,” Celeste said. “So we kind of merged the two cultures as well as American culture into one place so that everyone is welcome and everybody finds something that they like.”
Now, covered floor to ceiling with art, Maya is anything but your everyday minimalistic café. The artwork is a mix of family-made pieces and work by local artists. Maya Café functions as a platform for artistic expression, often highlighting female artists. Celeste said this was not intentional, but rather a reflection of who tends to be drawn to the space.
“It’s a lot of feminine energy, and it just brings it all together,” she said.
Celeste believes this energy is what keeps her regulars coming back again and again. The café encourages conversation and connection among customers. A sign inside reads: “Talk to each other like it’s 1995.”
“I sit down with people, and then someone else joins in, and then we all end up talking, we all end up friends,” Celeste said. “It’s very cool.”
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