King Coffee plans to move from Mill Avenue in Tempe to a larger storefront in West Mesa before the end of the year, trading a compact, campus-adjacent café for a space with a full kitchen. The family-owned business opened on Mill Avenue in 2015, in a space that had previously been an ice cream shop, according to Arizona Coffee.
The new shop is planned for 1620 W. University Drive, Suite 3, less than five miles from King Coffee’s current address at 1020 S. Mill Ave. Phoenix New Times reports that the building’s ownership plans to demolish it for a new commercial development, prompting the relocation. The owners had learned of the eventual demolition roughly three years ago, the outlet reported.
A different kind of coffee shop
The Mesa unit, formerly occupied by Zio’s Pizza & Wings, is about 2,000 square feet and has a full kitchen. King Coffee plans to use it to broaden its breakfast and lunch offerings and make pastries and breads in-house, Phoenix New Times reported. The new space is expected to have more than 50 indoor seats—nearly twice the Tempe shop’s indoor capacity—along with outdoor seating.
That added capacity comes with a change in customer geography. The Mill Avenue café has drawn people walking over from Arizona State University, including students without cars, according to Phoenix New Times. ASU lists 51,200 students at its Tempe campus for fall 2026; that figure provides campus context, but does not show how many students visited King Coffee. The owners told the outlet that leaving the campus area is a concern, while the Mesa site is near Mesa Community College and other schools.
The move also takes place amid other changes in downtown Tempe, but the projects should not be conflated: a City of Tempe document describes a separate Downtown Refresh effort to improve the Mill Avenue streetscape from University Drive to Rio Salado Parkway. The city document does not connect that streetscape work to the redevelopment of King Coffee’s building.
Transition plans and what is still unknown
The family also intends for the Mesa shop to continue its community role, with space for gatherings and rotating local artwork. Phoenix New Times reported that the owners plan to reflect their Filipino-American and Mexican heritage through food, music and art.
The Tempe shop is expected to remain open through most of the move. King Coffee anticipates about a week of downtime to transfer equipment and train staff once the Mesa space is ready, and nearly all staff are expected to move with the business, the outlet reported. The target is an opening before the holidays, but the shop has not announced an exact date.
Sources: Phoenix New Times; Arizona Coffee; Arizona State University; City of Tempe.
