Downtown Coffee Roaster Expanding to East Village

Cortez Hill roastery Achilles Coffee Roasters is adding to its downtown footprint with another cafe headed to the East Village’s Petco Park-adjacent Park 12 development, which is shaping up to be a serious hospitality hub; Holy Matcha recently launched in the mixed-use building and Carmelita’s, a popular Orange County Mexican eatery, will land there soon.

The new Achilles cafe is due this summer; owner and head roaster Chad Bell says he’s planning to be open by July. Bell moved to San Diego from San Francisco in 2014, and in 2015 took over the mobile Roast Coach coffee carts from original proprietor Salpi Sleiman, who went on to open North Park’s Holsem Coffee.

In 2016, Bell founded Achilles’ roasting facility and first cafe on Ash Street in Cortez Hill, which produces a dozen different roasts named after local neighborhoods and landmarks, from San Ysidro to Swami’s and Sunset Cliffs. The next year, Bell opened an all-outdoor cafe at the base of The Rey building at 800 B Street.

The 1,200-square-foot cafe at Park 12 will have more seating than any of Achilles’ other outposts, longer operating hours, and a larger retail section. Besides its core menu of coffee drinks and pour overs, it will also offer a substantial breakfast and lunch menu. After the East Village branch opens, Bell says he’ll look to open one more location in the downtown area.

Flocke & Avoyer’s Urban Strategies Group represented Park 12 in the transaction.