“The ‘presi’ invites you for a coffee,” reads the text on cardboard cups under the name of Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele’s X account. On Wednesday, Bukele offered to donate coffee from his farm to restaurants so they could give customers a free cup.
“I will personally (not as the government) donate 200 pounds of coffee [90 kilos] and 8,000 cups (plus sugar, etc.), for [restaurants] to give to their customers,” Bukele announced on X, Instagram, TikTok, and Facebook.
The president said he will choose “one business each day” after receiving “emails from entrepreneurs” following the promotion of a newly opened restaurant in downtown San Salvador, which features a large mural of his image on its yellow walls.
“3 pupusas for $1. And coffee from my farm, free,” Bukele wrote on social media, where he also posted a photo of a cardboard cup alongside three stuffed corn tortillas, the most traditional Salvadoran dish.
The restaurant that made this offer, which saw increased customer traffic following the president’s promotion, is decorated with colorful posters of a smiling Bukele in a white cap with the message: “Step by step.”
Bukele, a 42-year-old former publicist who claims to be radically transforming the country, enjoys immense popularity thanks to his offensive against gangs that terrorized Salvadorans. The president’s motivation is unclear, with critics labeling him a populist.
“He knows how to sell, and what better way than by giving people a sample of his coffee,” said sociologist René Martínez who did not rule out a marketing strategy. Following his anti-gang war, Bukele now says he will tackle the “mafias” that keep food prices high.
