Laguna Beach / Coastal Orange County
The coffee operators we could confirm cluster downtown within a few blocks of Main Beach: Equator Coffees inside the Rivian space at 160 South Coast Highway, Starbucks at 180 North Coast Highway at Broadway, and Zinc Cafe on Ocean Avenue. North of downtown the only other Starbucks is a licensed counter inside Pavilions at 600 North Coast Highway, and the HIP District on South Coast Highway has specialty tea at Tea & Turmeric. Starbucks' locator shows no store in South Laguna and no drive-thru anywhere in the city. For a new cafe, C-N and C-1 storefronts are the simplest path, since a seated cafe without alcohol is permitted there, while LBP and South Laguna Village sites need a conditional use permit for any cafe.
Population
22,710
Median HHI
$143,843
Median age
53.9
Homeownership
66.1%
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2020-2024 5-year estimates.
Primary retail corridors
Pacific Coast Highway · Forest Avenue · Broadway Street · Laguna Canyon Road · Glenneyre Street
Specific shopping centers in Laguna Beach that already carry credible co-tenancy for this use. Listed in approximate order of fit.
Forest Avenue at North Coast Highway
Anchors / key tenants: walkable historic downtown art, dining, and boutique retail
The cultural and visitor core. Art galleries, chef-driven restaurants, surf/lifestyle, and specialty boutiques cluster on Forest, Ocean, and the lower blocks of North Coast Highway. Strong year-round visitor traffic and an affluent local resident base.
South Coast Highway between Thalia Street and Diamond Street
Anchors / key tenants: art galleries, independent dining, coffee, boutiques
Just-under-one-mile strip with 26 art galleries, 17 restaurants, and several independent coffee shops with outdoor seating. The artisan-and-gallery node of Laguna retail. Tenants include Stephanos jewelry.
South Coast Highway
Anchors / key tenants: chef-driven dining and boutique retail
Established in 1934 — small intimate center with brick herringbone paths. Tenants include La Rue du Chocolat, Gelato Paradiso, and Smitten boutique. Pure coastal-village positioning.
South Pacific Coast Highway, South Laguna
Anchors / key tenants: small-format coastal retail and dining
Spread-out small-format coastal retail running south toward Dana Point border. Lower foot traffic, higher PCH drive-by visibility.
Existing operators are the most honest comp for whether a use can support Laguna Beach rents. These are publicly visible coffee shop space businesses currently trading in the market.
Equator Coffees (Laguna Beach)
160 South Coast Highway, Laguna Beach, CA 92651
Per Equator's own cafe page, the cafe sits inside Rivian's flagship retail space in the restored South Coast Theater (on the National Register of Historic Places), has outdoor seating steps from Main Beach Park, and opens at 7:30 a.m. with a 3 p.m. close on weekdays.
Starbucks (North Coast Hwy & Broadway Pl.)
180 N. Coast Hwy, Laguna Beach, CA 92651
Company-operated store. Starbucks' own locator lists in-cafe service and mobile ordering, and no drive-thru.
Starbucks inside Pavilions
600 N Pacific Coast Hwy, Laguna Beach, CA 92651
Licensed Starbucks counter inside the Pavilions grocery store, per Starbucks' locator. These two are the only Laguna Beach stores it returned; the next nearest are in Aliso Viejo, Laguna Niguel and at PCH and Crown Valley in Dana Point.
Zinc Cafe & Market
350 Ocean Avenue, Laguna Beach, CA 92651
Downtown cafe and market serving coffee, meals, beer and wine, open daily 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. per its own site. The operator also runs a Corona del Mar cafe.
Tea & Turmeric
1175 S Coast Hwy, Laguna Beach, CA 92651
Tea shop listed on the HIP District merchant page and on its own site.
01
Cafe or take-out: in C-1, cafes and tearooms not serving alcohol are permitted inside an enclosed building (Section 25.20.004(A)(3)), with outdoor tables allowed in connection with the indoor cafe (25.20.004(D)(3)), but a take-out restaurant needs a CUP that sets any seating (25.20.006(F)). Chapter 25.08 defines a take-out restaurant as one that primarily prepares food cooked on the premises for off-site consumption. C-N permits cafes with or without outdoor seating (25.19.002(E)) and puts take-out under a CUP (25.19.006(C)); LBP requires a CUP for cafes and take-out alike (25.18.004(J)); South Laguna Village requires one for any cafe (25.25.006(A)). The Planning Commission reviews every CUP (25.05.030(E)). Downtown sites follow the Downtown Specific Plan instead (25.40.030).
02
Drive-through: the code's 'drive-in restaurant' covers any business where the transaction is performed from the vehicle (Chapter 25.08). It needs a CUP in C-1 (Section 25.20.006(G)) and is not permitted in LBP, C-N or South Laguna Village (25.18.004(J), 25.19.002(E), 25.25.006(A)). If allowed, the parking minimum for a drive-thru is 10 spaces, and stalls in the lane can count (25.52.012(G)).
03
Parking is usually the deciding cost. Food service, including juice bars, bakeries and take-out, is parked at 1 space per 100 sq ft including outdoor seating, or 1 per 3 seats if that is higher (Section 25.52.012(G)), against 1 per 250 for general retail. A 1,200 sq ft shop goes from 5 required spaces to 12, and under 25.52.004(E) the difference must be built or covered with in-lieu certificates. Section 25.52.006(E) allows three certificates per site without a parking demand study, caps certificates at 50 percent of any one use's requirement, and requires a coastal development permit.
04
Outdoor seating relief: the City Council may approve a CUP (and a coastal development permit where required) reducing parking by up to five spaces for a sidewalk cafe whose outdoor seating is open to customers and, on public property, to the general public (Section 25.52.006(G)(2)). South Laguna Village adds its own reductions of up to five spaces for a sidewalk cafe and three for a restaurant serving local residents (25.25.008(G)). In C-1, the required front yard open space (5 feet times lot frontage) may be used for open-air seating serving an adjacent indoor restaurant (25.20.008(C)(2)).
05
Health plan check: the Orange County Health Care Agency Plan Check unit reviews plans for all new and remodeled food facilities, asks for a menu and equipment specification sheets, and requires a health permit application before final inspection. The applicant must give the City of Laguna Beach building division proof of the OCHCA plan approval.
06
Grease control depends on the sewer provider. The City of Laguna Beach has run a grease control ordinance (Municipal Code Chapter 17.40) since 2002 with a city inspector, according to South Coast Water District. In South Laguna, from Nyes Place to Three Arch Bay, South Coast Water District operates the sewer under contract; its 2006 Grease Control Ordinance treats compliance with the city program as compliance and asks food service establishments to file a General Waste Discharge Application, which can qualify them for lower sewer rates.
Zoning, licensing, and demographic figures on this page come from the public records below. Codes and licenses change, so confirm with the city and the licensing agency before you sign.