Popular coffeehouse is leaving downtown SLO — but it’s moving to a familiar spot
Ascendo Coffee is leaving its spot on Monterey Street and moving to a new home in San Luis Obispo.
In the next couple months, Ascendo, which first opened in 2011 two doors down from its current Monterey Street spot, will relocate to the commercial space vacated by The Station wine bar.
The coffeehouse focuses on ethnically sourced, specialty grade and organic products bought from small importers who work with farmers from around the world.
The business still will need to get city permits to upgrade its tenant building at 311 S. Higuera St., but hopes to open in one to two months.
“We plan to move our roaster into the building, and it will be a really great experience for people to able to see the roasting process as they get their coffee,” said owner Jonathan Stauf, who also operates an Ascendo location in Los Osos.
The business, which currently roasts its coffee offsite in a building near the airport, will maintain two locations with the move into its new space.
Stauf said the Monterey Street location had a five-year lease, which the business chose not to renew after that agreement expired in August. Ascendo is leasing the space on a month-to-month basis.
The business has been open for takeout amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Landlord Brian Espy operates Doghouse Promotions, a promotional products company located next door, and is a personal friend who had been coming to Ascendo for years, Stauf said.
Adjusting to the pandemic
Stauf, who signed a five-year lease at the 311 S. Higuera site, said part of the reason for the move was to save on rent costs.
He said the downtown location at 974 Monterey St. is more expensive and made it difficult to commit to a new five-year agreement during the pandemic.
Stauf said the South Higuera location has an outdoor back patio, which would allow the shop to serve customers in the fresh air, but he’s still working out permitting details with the city.
The 311 S. Higuera space, consisting of roughly 1,100 square feet on an approximately 3,500-square-foot parcel near Walker Street, is a former gas station and automotive garage that has been converted into retail use.
“It’s a beautiful building,” Stauf said. “I’ve always loved it — the art deco and the roll-up doors.”
Stauf said the South Higuera area is transitioning from industrial uses into something of a “funk zone.” Megan’s Organic Market, a cannabis shop, recently opened in the area, and other nearby businesses include Ben Franklin’s Sandwich Co., Nautical Bean and Headstrong Fit.
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