Home Blog Customer Stories Slaying Content Media: A Toronto Bakery Surprises their Guests with Content Through Coffee

Slaying Content Media: A Toronto Bakery Surprises their Guests with Content Through Coffee

stephanieJanuary 18, 2018
Café San Remo

How does a bakery and deli, which has been open since 1969 in downtown Toronto, capture the attention of their guests on a daily basis?

How does a spot with so many years behind it stay relevant on social media?

Take a walk into Café San Remo and you will be immediately blown away by the size of it. This is huge place, just bursting with every kind of pastry possible from fresh loaves out of the oven by the minute to doughnuts galore. Behind this heaven of bread are three brothers, Nick, Rob and Ed, who pump out cakes and delicacies by the minute, oversized deli sandwiches and the list goes on.

MERRY CHRISTMAS YA FILTHY ANIMAL ??

A post shared by SanRemo Bakery (@sanremobakery) on



But what really intrigues is how they manage to woo their audience with optimal Instagram content, including Ripples™, creating messages and designs on coffee foam.

The Instastats

37.7k followers (and growing)
Each post averages 1000 likes

Here’s how they do it.

Background Crazy

It’s one thing to have a good quote on your coffee and excellent content, but San Remo Bakery takes the Ripples experience many steps further by focusing on the tagline. They also focus on the background of the photo, making sure that the whole photo tells the story and the details that surround the coffee are significant.

It’s cold in here. ??‍♀️❄️ @gabunion

A post shared by SanRemo Bakery (@sanremobakery) on

Localize Everything

The content flies at San Remo for one simple reason: it’s local. Everything local creates a sense of community. For instance, leveraging local teams catches people in the mood when their team is ahead and seeing your team in your drink puts you in the spirit.  It’s a winning combo.

ARGOS WIN ??? #GreyCup2017

A post shared by SanRemo Bakery (@sanremobakery) on

Celebrate Every Holiday

Finding specific days to motivate: check their feed, and you’ll know what day it is. They cater their content to the day and any special occasions. Every holiday is celebrated! Make it relevant, as each day has its own theme.

Know Thy Audience

San Remo’s social team is made up of mind-readers – well, not really, but they know their audience so well that they can say what they are thinking. There are lots of students in the area, studying for finals, so they have motivational quotes, lots of pop culture, and more.

According to Karin, San Remo’s social media expert, “ I don’t plan in advance. I think about what’s going on in the world and like to make Ripples designs that reflect that. If it’s an ugly day outside, I’ll choose a Ripples image to reflect that. If it’s Friday and felt like a long week, I want a party  Is everyone talking about a celebrity lately? Then I go with that! It’s so important to be timely and know what’s going on. Pop culture and knowledge of the world news is vital.”

All in all, San Remo is increasing likes and community with Ripples, because the team gets one very important thing right. They understand their audience and know them well, enabling them to tailor their content directly to them and speaking their language.

Oh, and also because they have the best doughnuts around.

Fridays be like easy peasy, lemon squeezy ?

A post shared by SanRemo Bakery (@sanremobakery) on

Related blog posts

Rebecca Connors • August 2, 2026

How ‘Intentional Espresso’ Turns Coffee Into an Interactive Brand Experience

The team at Intentional Espresso, a specialty coffee catering company based in the Pacific Northwest, knows that the best events stay with people long after they end. That’s why they designed their coffee bar to create moments that feel personal, intentional, and worth talking about. Owned by Randy Matheny and co-owned by Katie Matheny, Intentional
Rebecca Connors • July 28, 2026

How Astro Coffee Turns Coffee Into an Event Experience

At a great event, the details guests remember are often the moments that feel personal, unexpected, and worth sharing. For Astro Coffee, a family-owned mobile coffee company based in Golden, Colorado, coffee creates an opportunity to deliver all three. Owned by Lisa Huron and Steven Schillaci, Astro Coffee operates a fleet of coffee carts, trailers,
Rebecca Connors • July 21, 2026

Recipe: Tropical Mango Matcha Cold Foam

This Summer mango matcha latte is a striking, easy-to-make layered drink that pairs sweet mango purée with earthy matcha and a thick foam cap ready for printing, perfect for summer menus, brunch service, or any venue that wants a colorful, shareable signature drink. Ingredients The mango purée base: 100 g (3.5 oz) mango, fresh or