For Maggie McIlroy, opening a coffee shop isn’t a new idea – it’s one she’s been carrying with her for years. Now, that dream is finally taking shape in Jacksonville Beach.
McIlroy is planning to open Maggie’s Coffeehouse at 803 Third St. N., turning the two-story building into a neighborhood coffee shop and sourdough-focused bakery. The business is currently targeting a summer 2027 opening.
“This is a dream come true,” McIlroy told What Now Jacksonville. “I’ve wanted to do this since I was a freshman in college, and that was a decade ago.”
The future coffeehouse will be just two blocks from the beach, putting it in a spot McIlroy believes is particularly well suited for people grabbing a coffee while out for a walk, heading to the beach or riding their bikes through Jacksonville Beach. “It couldn’t be a more perfect location, I think,” she said.
McIlroy had been searching for a space for several months before 803 Third St. N. became available. What caught her attention was not only the location, but the building itself.
“There are a lot of coffee shops in Jax Beach, but there’s only one other one that is on the beachfront side of 1A or Third Street, so you don’t have to cross over that traffic,” McIlroy said.
The property also has its own parking lot and plenty of room for seating – two details that made it stand out from the other spaces she had considered. “When I saw it go up for sale, I knew it immediately. That was the perfect spot,” she said.
The building also fits the atmosphere McIlroy has long envisioned for the business. Rather than creating a traditional café space, she wants Maggie’s to have the comfortable feeling of a home. She described the future shop as a building that looks like a house, allowing the coffeehouse to feel warm and inviting rather than overly commercial.
On the food side, Maggie’s will focus heavily on sourdough, although McIlroy said the bakery won’t be exclusively limited to sourdough offerings. The coffeehouse will occupy two stories, with seating giving customers a place to settle in rather than simply grab a drink and leave.
For McIlroy, getting to this point is exciting – but still feels a little surreal. “I’m so excited,” she said. “I couldn’t be more excited that it’s actually happening. It’s still very, like, surreal and almost a pinching moment every time we cross a new milestone.”
With construction and preparations still ahead, Jacksonville Beach will have to wait a little longer for its newest neighborhood coffee spot. If everything stays on track, Maggie’s Coffeehouse will open in summer 2027 at 803 Third St. N.
