Coffee Talk
Fort Worth player perks up coffee cafe in downtown Dallas
A downtown Dallas high-rise has partnered with a major coffee bean player from Fort Worth to run its ground-floor coffee cafe.
Fort Worth's Avoca Coffee has taken over the coffee operation in the glass-enclosed lobby of St. Paul Place, the building at St. Paul and Ross Avenue. This is the same coffee space that was originally settled by Pearl Cup Coffee, who was there for five years. Hospitality Sweet took over the space at the end of 2014 but left about a month ago.
Avoca Coffee co-founder Garold LaRue says they were excited for the opportunity to spread their wings east.
"The owners wanted somebody to be there to deliver a consistent product for the tenants," he says. "We have some great baristas there, and we've partnered with Bolsa Mercado to bring in some options for lunch."
That includes sandwiches and salads, but LaRue's main focus is providing good coffee.
"I remember when Pearl Cup was there, I came in on the first day to have a cup," he says. "I think it's a great space. It's very pretty and yet modern. The open floor plan makes it visible to everyone."
The closest other coffee options nearby include a Starbucks that's in the lobby of the Fairmount Hotel, a few blocks down Ross; and a Starbucks in the Chase Tower at 2200 Ross Ave., on the second floor.
Deeper into downtown, there is a Starbucks on the ground floor of the 1717 Pacific Ave. building, and indie coffee options such Weekend Coffee at the Joule, Serj Books at 400 N. St. Paul St., and Stupid Good Coffee on the skywalk at 1910 Pacific Ave.
Aside from the opportunity to serve the building's needs, LaRue is also grateful for the opportunity to get his footprint into Dallas.
"It lets people get to know our coffee, and we get to learn about downtown," he says. "We've also been interested in expanding into Dallas, so this gives us the chance to test-drive it first and see how people take to it. In the future, we do want to have a spot in Dallas so this is a cool foray into that effort."
Chef Shirley Chung.Photo by Samantha Marie Photography
Chef Shirley Chung is known as the "Dumpling Queen of Los Angeles."Photo by Samantha Marie Photography