Portland’s Cult Favorite Coava Coffee Roasters Sets Sights on San Diego

When Portland’s Coava Coffee Roasters — one of the nation’s most revered craft coffee companies — looked beyond the Pacific Northwest for its first out-of-town cafe, the specialty coffee experts decided to pass on other top coffee markets including San Francisco, Los Angeles, and New York in favor of joining our burgeoning craft coffee community.

Founder Matt Higgins, who was already an experienced barista, coffee buyer, and roaster before he launched Coava in 2008, cited San Diego’s appreciation and openness for high-end coffee as the reason for their expansion into downtown San Diego, where Coava Coffee Roasters will be located within The Westin San Diego at 400 West Broadway.

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The 2,100-square-foot space should be complete for a mid-April launch. Coava is just settling into a new 10,000-square-foot roastery in Portland, and will be regularly sending fresh product to fuel the all-day coffee bar, which will offer a full espresso menu, cold brew made on-site, and pour-over coffee brewed in a speedy 120 seconds via custom filters. The San Diego cafe will also serve beer and wine, and Coava will be partnering with a local vendor to provide breakfast and pastry options. Higgins is hoping that San Diego will embrace the brand; he tells Eater that if Coava’s foray into San Diego is successful, he would likely open another location here before venturing into a different city.