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The first retail shop from local coffee roastery Reza's Roast is located at 438 Wayne Ave. in the Oregon District, and it has been in the works for about 18 months. The new and independently owned shop sells specialty coffee drinks, including lattes and espresso, as well as teas, chai, ice cream and pastries.
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Here’s a sneak peek inside Reza’s Downtown, including two rooms specially designed for parents of young children.
Audria Maki, founder of Reza's Downtown, has partnered with Columbus-based specialty ice cream maker Jeni's for the shop's frozen treats, and with Dayton-based Azra's Mediterranean Cuisine, which operates at the Second Street Market, for its pastries.
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The 3,500-square-foot Reza’s Downtown seats 50 to 60 in multiple seating areas, including a parlor that can be rented for special events.
But two of the shop’s smallest rooms have already generated some significant buzz even before the business opens. Maki said she incorporated both rooms into the design because of her experiences as the mother of three boys, ages 4, 7 and 10.
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The first is a bathroom that includes a regular-sized toilet and a much smaller toilet for children. The second is a “Mother’s Room,” containing a comfortable chair, ottoman and sink, that can be used by moms for pumping breast milk, or as a quiet place where adults or a parent with easily distracted children can enjoy a sensory break, Maki said.
Credit: Mark Fisher
Credit: Mark Fisher
The shop’s espresso drinks are made in a manual-lever machine hand-crafted in Italy, the shop owner said. Dairy products are sourced from Fresh Start Farm in Jackson Center, which sells at the 2nd Street Market.
Azra’s owner Azra Kaurin said earlier this year the she has been working for months on the menu of pastries and desserts for the coffee shop.
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“The pastries are quite unique to our area — they're classic European recipes we've passed down in our family for generations,” Kaurin said. “There will be Italian, Greek, and Turkish delicate pastries to choose from, as well as Viennese and Bosnian strudels, cream puffs, eclairs and cupcakes.”
The Fairborn-based Reza’s Roast specializes in wholesale sales of coffees and beans, and Maki said the opening of Reza’s first retail location takes the wholesale business “to the next level. We will be able to display the quality of our coffees, and we’ve already had businesses and restaurants reaching out to us.” There is also a chance the roastery operations could move to the Wayne Avenue shop, she said.
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Reza’s Downtown has hired eight baristas and a manager, all of whom have trained extensively. “We’re like family already,” Maki said.
A newly paved and striped parking lot provides parking behind the new business.
Reza’s Downtown’s hours will be 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Thursday, and 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday, closed Sunday.
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