A St. Augustine-based coffee chain known for its Aussie meat pies and honey-laced lattes is set to open its 10th location this November in Downtown Jacksonville, moving into a ground-floor retail space at 1200 Riverplace Blvd. that another coffee shop walked away from before it ever opened. The Kookaburra will occupy space in the Hanania Place building at 1200 Riverplace Blvd. on the Southbank, according to co-owner Megan Vidal.
Vidal and her husband and business partner, Spencer Hooker, plan to open the Southbank shop as the chain's 10th location.
The space had a head start: it was originally built out for Flamingo Coffee Roasters LLC, the Murray Hill-based coffee, beer and wine concept founded in 2018 on Edgewood Avenue South under CEO Paul Carr and COO Donald Webb, according to Jacksonville Today. The City of Jacksonville issued a $157,950 building permit in February 2025 for the interior build-out of a planned 1,533-square-foot cafe. Flamingo ultimately got cold feet and ended its lease deal, per the Daily Record's reporting, and the landlord released the company from the agreement.
A Turnkey Space Changes Hands
With the build-out already in place, Newmark Phoenix Realty Group, which handles leasing for the building, marketed the space as a ready-to-go coffee shop — and the Kookaburra stepped in to take it. Jim Sebesta said he was pleased the Kookaburra took the space, per the Daily Record's account of the deal.
The Jacksonville Downtown Investment Authority board approved a $53,430 Retail Enhancement Program grant for Flamingo's 1200 Riverplace Blvd. project in August 2024.
From St. Augustine Roots to a 10th Storefront
The Kookaburra was founded in downtown St. Augustine in July 2012 and had grown to seven locations, including its Alachua County shop at Progress Park, which opened in July 2024 as its newest location, according to Mainstreet Daily News.
The shop's Australian theme traces back to Hooker, who holds dual U.S. and Australian citizenship, which shaped the brand's identity. The Jacksonville location will serve the chain's full menu, including drip coffee, espresso, cappuccino, tea, iced brew, lattes and baked goods, plus specialty drinks like the Honey Badger Latte, inspired by a customer's order and made with honey, cinnamon and vanilla. Breakfast and lunch pies are baked from scratch daily, including the Rashers & Egg Pie with bacon, egg, cheddar and pepper jack cheeses, alongside muffins, scones, sweet breads, cookies, and vegan and gluten-free options.
The new shop will have about 30 to 35 seats, Vidal said, and the owners expect it to operate daily from 6:30 a.m. to around 7 or 8 p.m. The location is at 1200 Riverplace Blvd. on the Southbank.
Southbank's Office Tower Finds Its Footing
Truist Bank signed a 2023 lease to relocate its Jacksonville offices and a first-floor branch into the building.
That tenant stability is unfolding alongside a residential boom nearby. Developer Related Group broke ground in May 2026 on the $202.7 million Southbank Residences project at 835 Museum Circle, a 395-unit luxury apartment development with ground-floor retail on the former River City Brewing site, featuring a 25-story tower and an eight-story building — a project Hoodline covered as it neared its groundbreaking. The Kookaburra's move reflects two forces reshaping the Southbank at once: a wave of new residential density and the city's push to fill ground-floor commercial space with incentive-backed retail.
Downtown Food and Beverage Grants
Food and beverage grants specifically have drawn comparison in recent months. In June 2025, the DIA board approved $215,000 in public incentives for Besa Bakery and Tea Room Speakeasy in Downtown's Elbow district, including a $200,000 Food and Beverage Retail Enhancement grant structured as a five-year forgivable loan — a project Hoodline detailed in its report on the Elbow district bakery's build-out. Kookaburra's arrival comes after the DIA board approved a grant for Flamingo's planned project at the same address.
Beyond Jacksonville, the Kookaburra's story began in St. Augustine.
