A building that housed a San Clemente staple for more than half a century is getting a second life. According to county health department records, the property at 114 Avenida Victoria, which once held La Tiendita, is to become home to a new concept called Happy Coffee Club.
Shelby and Cameron Houle purchased the space, saving it from vacancy since the Mexican restaurant closed its doors in 2019. They are working with architects and designers to get it ready, but have run into some challenges. Cameron shared on the company’s page last week about a recent hiccup.
“At the end of last week, we got remarks back from Orange County Health about some changes we need to make. Our front door has a couple of steps leading up to it, so it can’t be considered a delivery door. So our delivery door has to be in the back,” he explained. “Our plan all along was to have the back patio open with a big foldable door, but a delivery door has to be self-closing due to open-air kitchen rules.”
He said they are looking into options like adding a self-closing door that goes directly into the kitchen or a large-scale sliding electric door. Once they figure out a plan for that, they can resubmit to the health department and continue with construction.
Happy Coffee Club’s menu will serve single-origin Brazilian coffee, espresso drinks, flavored energy drinks, and healthy smoothies. There will also be a “happy hour” later in the day with an assortment of craft beers and wines. A liquor license application from April is listed as pending.
