Downtown Mesa Lost Some Favorites This Summer. Main Street Is Already Refilling the Space.

Outcast Doughnuts closed its shop near Main Street and Macdonald on July 19. Phoenix New Times reported that its sister wine bar, Rebel Wine Lounge, poured its last discounted glasses a few doors west that same week. Ten weeks later the doughnut space had a new tenant. Randizzle's, the burger-and-taco food truck started by former Arizona Rattlers player Randy Gatewood, signed a lease for the former Outcast storefront. In its announcement, as reported by KTAR, Randizzle's explained the speed: "we found an existing restaurant space that was already almost completely equipped and could get us open much faster."

That one sentence explains what has happened downtown since summer. A closure on Main Street leaves a kitchen behind, and in downtown Mesa right now a finished kitchen is drawing the next operator in quickly.

The Address Ledger

Put the summer's departures next to the arrivals and announcements, block by block, and the map fills back in:

Not every loss has a successor yet. PHOENIX magazine reported in its September closings roundup that Jarrod's Coffee, Tea and Gallery in historic downtown Mesa closed after 14 years. No replacement for that space has been announced. Even so, the ledger shows more new arrivals than departures, and two of the five rows are buildings that housed restaurants or bars before.

Two Owners Looking at the Same Blocks

The people behind these changes see downtown in very different ways, and both views came from the same few months. Rebel co-owner Christina Goldsmith told Phoenix New Times that business was inconsistent and that the crowds expected from new apartments never arrived for her concepts. "We're two years into this particular location now, Outcast is three years in, and we have seen zero progress," she said. Rebel and Outcast are reopening at The Gilmore in Gilbert, where the same ownership group also plans a Level 1 Arcade Bar with its hidden cocktail bar next year. In Mesa, Level 1 and the Alchemy 48 speakeasy in its basement are staying open.

Two weeks later, the same outlet sat down with Crust Concepts owner Michael Merendino in his new Mesa dining room. "There's such an energy in the community down here," he said, "which is unlike anything in the Valley."

Both owners are describing their own businesses accurately. What separates them is the model each one brought to Main Street. Goldsmith had counted on new neighbors walking over. Merendino opened inside a hotel and built for the whole day, from the first latte to a late cocktail.

The 233 Runs on Hotel Hours

The 233 Suites, a 76-room Unscripted by Hyatt at 233 E. Main St., officially opened with a ribbon cutting in early August. The building came out of a rescue. The City of Mesa's announcement explains that the original apartment project stalled in bankruptcy before co-managers Soltrust and Hospitality Capital Partners took it over and redesigned it as a hotel with 13,000 square feet of office space. Mayor Mark Freeman tied the hotel straight to the restaurant scene: "Every new hotel room supports local restaurants, shops, entertainment venues and jobs."

On the ground floor that turns into three businesses run by the Crust team:

• Bombolino opens the day with specialty lattes, croissants and breakfast burritos, plus doughnuts, gelato and affogato. Its signature is the Bomba, a doughnut stuffed with gelato. Glendale's Villa Dolce makes the gelato, and Mesa's Buttered Up Bakery prepares the pastries, which the Crust team finishes on site. Merendino added the shop after the hotel asked about coffee.
• Crust Simply Italian, the chain's fifth Valley location, fills a 7,300-square-foot room with floor-to-ceiling windows that look out on a Main Street patio. The menu covers New York-style pizzas, chicken Parmesan, and pastas with alfredo, bolognese or vodka sauce. Crust's own site lists it as open daily from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.
• The Nightingale is the hidden bar, and you get to it through Bombolino. Look for the Dead Canary, a dark rum espresso martini with Licor 43, cold brew and coconut, and the Tail Feather, a cucumber-infused mezcal with mint syrup, lime and soda. It also has a private patio.

Crust first announced this location in 2023 and stayed with the project after the original developer filed for bankruptcy in 2024. Merendino mentioned the shared building with the Hyatt and the nearby Benedictine and Arizona State university campuses as reasons the corner works.

Stage 12 West Took Over a Brewery Room

At the other end of the walk, near Country Club Drive, Stage 12 West opened Oct. 2 in the room 12 West Brewing used to occupy. KTAR described it as a restaurant that doubles as a live entertainment venue, with high-quality sound and laser displays. The menu is built for an evening out with a show: spicy wings, loaded nachos and a bruschetta trio to start, then grilled salmon, a BBQ pulled pork sandwich or pasta primavera, and chocolate lava cake, cheesecake or apple crisp to finish.

Opening weekend brought DJ sets and bands on both Friday and Saturday nights. Downstairs, a speakeasy called Jolie's Secret was announced for Oct. 9 at 5 p.m. Stage 12 West has not posted regular hours on its website, so check its social channels before you go.

With Stage 12 West at one end, The 233 at the other, and Level 1 and Alchemy 48 still pouring in between, you can now walk Main Street from dinner to a show to a nightcap without getting back in the car.

What 2027 Adds to the Same Buildings

The next round is already assigned to specific addresses. Pinnacle Brewing, the north Scottsdale brewery the Wilson family opened in 2024 in a former gas station on Hayden Road, plans a taproom and kitchen in downtown Mesa in early 2027. PHOENIX magazine reported it will take Suite 101 at 104 W. Main St., the former home of The Boutique clothing store, with all brewing staying in Scottsdale. Rebel's former suite is in the same building. "Mesa is a beer hub, and we would like to be part of that," co-owner Bob Wilson told Phoenix New Times.

The bigger addition is Main Street Market, a $6 million restaurant incubator going into the former A.J.'s Grocery. ABC15 reported that Local First Arizona is leading the project with city support, funded by Mesa's remaining COVID relief money. When it opens in early 2027, seven first-time restaurant owners will each get a two-year lease and business counseling. City officials put downtown's current count at around 50 restaurants. Seven new kitchens under one roof would be one of the largest single additions the district has seen, and the two-year leases mean the lineup is designed to rotate.

November on Main Street

The events calendar gives downtown regular crowds on dates set well in advance, which matters to every patio on the table above. Here are the next few:

• Downtown Mesa BBQ and Bluegrass Classic, Friday, Nov. 6 from 5 to 9 p.m. and Saturday, Nov. 7 from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., centered at 1 N. Macdonald, according to the City of Mesa calendar.
• Sunset Market, the second Friday of each month at Main and Macdonald from 5 to 9 p.m., with upcoming dates on Nov. 13 and Dec. 11, per the Downtown Mesa event page.
• Merry Main Street Kickoff and Christmas Tree Lighting, Friday, Nov. 27 from 5 to 10 p.m. throughout downtown. It opens a month-long celebration with a holiday market and a 6,000-square-foot real ice rink, and daily activities are posted at MerryMainSt.com.

A Sunset Market Friday works well as a starting point: coffee at Bombolino, the market at Main and Macdonald, then down to Stage 12 West for whoever is on stage that night.

Our team pays attention when a storefront changes hands, because a kitchen that's ready for the next tenant is a lesson in what makes any property easy to take over. If you own a home near downtown Mesa and want to know which updates would make it just as ready, Frank Realty Group can walk through it with you. Request a Free Home Valuation & Renovation Plan.