Chef pours Caribbean culture into dishes at new coffee shop in downtown Myrtle Beach, SC

A new shop that serves Caribbean cuisine and coffee has opened in the heart of downtown Myrtle Beach.

Island Vibez Cafe & Coffeehouse, 533 Broadway St., is a family business that offers various coffee flavors and specialty teas.

The shop’s grand opening is Thursday, May 23, 2024.

Island Vibez is owned by Rechel Anderson and Michael and Lisa Coombs. Anderson’s daughter Brittany McElveen, and Coombs’ daughter, Mercades Knox, also work at the restaurant.

This is the first restaurant for the family. Anderson said the three wanted to open something but didn’t know quite what it would it be. “Then we had an epiphany,” she said. “What about opening a coffee house?”

But the partners knew they wanted to also combine Michael Coombs’ Jamaican culture and cooking skills into the shop’s offerings.

In addition to different coffees, with cappuccinos and flavors such as caramel and cinnamon, the cafe will also serve pastries and muffins and Jamaican beef and chicken patties, jerk chicken, Rasta Pasta and sandwiches.

Michael Coombs who is the chef said he grew up in Jamaica watching his grandmother make “amazing meals.” When he moved to Kingston, he got the opportunity to work in a hotel kitchen where he was able to hone his cooking skills, including grilling meats.

“It inspired me,” Coombs said. “I love cooking.”

He said this venture will help him share with customers his Caribbean culture, something he has not seen in the Myrtle Beach area. He and his wife would serve his food at area festivals, but the cafe will allow him to eventually serve additional dishes, such as ox tail.

The cafe is bright inside with floral seats and island music playing on the speakers. Customers can either order to go or sit down in one of the shop’s many tables and booths.

The cafe’s location, which is a primary spot in downtown, has been a blessing, Anderson said.

Anderson said she is impressed with how Myrtle Beach is bringing life back to the area around Broadway Street and downtown Myrtle Beach.