New coffee shop opening in vacant SLO Starbucks — and it’s a familiar name

A popular coffee shop is opening another location in San Luis Obispo, taking over the vacant space left after Starbucks closed one of its local coffeehouses last year.

Nautical Bean is opening what will be its fifth county location next to the Trader Joe’s in SLO, taking over the Starbucks spot in the shopping plaza off of South Higuera Street, owner Brett Jones announced on the coffee shop’s Facebook.

Jones always kept an eye on the Starbucks spot and its regulars that would fill the space. When the location at 3971 S. Higuera St. shut its doors in September 2025, he saw a coffee community become “displaced.”

“There’s a group of dudes that still hang out in the parking lot out there and drink coffee, because the Starbucks is closed,” Jones told The Tribune in a recent interview. “This already had a built-in community, so if we could absorb that and build on it, hopefully they give us a try. That was a win-win for us.”

Jones signed the lease for the spot two months ago, and is currently working on the cabinetry and making the place have its classic “Nautical Bean spin.”

Additions of retro 25-year-old chairs from the SLO Courthouse that were sold on Facebook Marketplace help create that ambiance of a place “to stay and hang out for a while,” he said.

“We wanted to build something that was community-driven and was there for the neighborhoods and focus on comfy seating and things like that,” he said.

Nautical Bean leaving SLO art gallery made way for new spot, owner says

The Central Coast coffee shop chain first opened in 1999 in Shell Beach.

Jones came in as the shop’s third owner when he bought the business in 2002 with his family. He eventually opened locations in SLO, Baywood and, most recently, Morro Bay, while also operating a cafe inside The Bunker SLO.

That latter venture is coming to an end, however, as the San Luis Obispo art gallery and event space is planning to launch its own in-house cafe called The Undergrounds.

With that end in sight, the moment for Jones to create another Nautical Bean location was “pretty good timing,” he said.

“They’re just ready to take over the space, and it’s going to be a great transition,” he said.

Nautical Bean’s last day in The Bunker is set for June 25, with the space entering a “cocoon” to set up its in-house coffee shop.

When is new Nautical Bean coffee shop expected to open?

The South Higuera Street location is set to open the first week of July, Jones said.

With the new shop, Jones continues to expand on the legacy of his existing properties.

The new space will have all its popular coffee and menu items — from its breakfast burritos to lunch grub like the tuna melt — similar to its other locations in SLO, Morro Bay and Baywood.

With those trusty favorites and its devoted fan base, Jones has made Nautical Bean a name to be reckoned with in the local coffee scene over the years.

“I’ve been doing coffee for 24 years in this community, and I’ve got people that bring in their kids, and I remember when these people were in elementary school,” he said. “It’s really cool to see that generational growth now in the community.”

He added: “It’s still a family business, for sure.”

For more information

Nautical Bean at 3971 S. Higuera St. is set to open in the next few weeks, operating full business hours on Monday to Friday from 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Saturday to Sunday from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m.

For more information, visit the coffee shop’s website at nbcentralcoast.com.