JavaVino Coffee & Wine House closing Dec. 14, becoming wholesale coffee business

Three longtime Atlanta restaurants, Daddy D’z BBQ Joynt, Agave, and JavaVino will close within the next two months. The owners of all there businesses cited industry challenges, such as a reduced customer base and higher ingredient costs, as motivations for the decision to call it quits.

Daddy D’z, located at Memorial Drive and Hill Street, will cease operations after service on Dec. 31. The 35-year-old restaurant is considered an Atlanta classic, and was featured on Food Network’s “Sauced”. Owner Christianah Coker-Jackson told WSB-TV that the landlord is selling the building, but that she hopes to re-open Daddy D’z in another location. 

Less than a week later – and just a few blocks away in Cabbagetown – the owners of Agave announced plans to close the Southwestern restaurant at the end of January. Agave, which opened in 2000 on Boulevard, launched a GoFundMe fundraiser for the restaurant’s affected employees. 

Then, over in Poncey-Highland, the owners of JavaVino announced the Dec. 14 closure of the coffee and wine bar after nearly 20 years on North Highland. Unlike Agave and Daddy D’z, however, JavaVino won’t go completely dark. Instead, it will shift to a wholesale coffee business, something co-owner Heddy Kuhl sees as a positive development.

In addition to serving as a cafe and wine bar, JavaVino roasts coffee for local restaurants, along with “green,” unroasted beans for regional roasters. 

“[This] will actually help us get our family’s coffee and farmer-direct coffee into more hands,” Kuhl said of pivoting to wholesale. “We want to travel to coffee farms and build further relationships with farmers and roast and distribute the coffee.”

“We’re getting older and we want to focus on what’s most important. We decided that this was the best path for our family,” she added. 

The roasting facility in Stone Mountain will remain intact, and JavaVino patrons can still purchase its coffee at the Grant Park Farmers Market and local shops such as Candler Park Market. 

JavaVino loyalty program members will be able to transition the cafe’s physical stars into online credit. Kuhl compiled an FAQ page on JavaVino’s website for customers with further questions. 

Kuhl and co-owner Steve Franklin are currently finalizing the sale of the North Highland space with a new owner who plans to open a similar cafe called At Arbeta. It, too, will serve JavaVino coffee.

“[The new owner] reminds me of us when we were coming up with the idea [for JavaVino] and the enthusiasm behind it,” Kuhl said. “I think there was a lot of good energy between us and the buyer, and it worked out pretty nicely.”

“We’re replacing ourselves in the community with somebody that we trust [and who] is a good fit for the community,” she continued. 

JavaVino will close after service on Dec. 14. Look for a story with more details on the plans for At Arbeta in Poncey-Highland on Rough Draft soon.

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