Phoenix’s best coffee shops: Take a look behind the scenes
Phoenix’s coffee scene has been growing for years. A few local spots let Republic staff behind the scenes for the a close up look at their cafes.
Republic Staff
Corrections & Clarifications: Danae Alexander of La Rue crepes was misidentified in an earlier version of this article.
It’s been just over six months since La Rue crepes popped up on the Phoenix scene in November 2024, attracting dedicated fans to local businesses like Strip Mall Coffee. And in that short time, owner Alex Villa’s gluten-free buckwheat crepes have become a staple of my personal diet.
“I think they’re really delicious crepes, and they taste so similar to the regular flour, I can imagine it’s a treat for people who don’t consume gluten,” Villa said.
Before he took over the kitchen at Strip Mall Coffee, he started La Rue as a street food stand in downtown Seattle in 2020 after he and his partner, Danae Alexander, were laid off from restaurant jobs in the early days of the pandemic.
From the streets of Seattle …
While relying on unemployment checks to get by, they were presented with the opportunity of a lifetime when they met a landlord who was leasing a small retail space attached to their apartment complex. Villa remembers the landlord told him, “I want to put a (food) concept down there. I’m looking for a chef.”
Villa spent some of his college days traveling and working on farms in Europe. He recalled “seeing dudes in Paris turning out dozens of crepes for people on the street out of a really small stall,” which he thought looked similar to the Seattle storefront, which was comparable in size to a spacious storage closet.
Crepes, Villa said, are relatively easy and cheap to make. “All you need is flour, egg and milk.”
So, he and Alexander used the last bit of their savings to sign a lease for the space, which comprised just enough room to fit a crepe maker, an espresso machine and a takeout window.
“It was our first business, and we just jumped into it,” Villa said.
The takeout window gave Villa and Alexander a leg up in 2020, when diners were still not eating inside in an effort to social distance. Customers could line up outside with their masks on and order a coffee and crepe to go, served “the Parisian way” in a handheld paper cone pocket stamped with the La Rue logo.
“It was very much a Seattle vibe, for sure,” Villa said.
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… to popups in Phoenix
Villa grew up in the East Valley, staying in Arizona until he graduated from ASU in 2016. He initially moved to Seattle to follow a common desert-dwellers’ dream of living among greenery and fishing in the Puget Sound. But by 2023, he and Alexander found themselves actually missing the Arizona sun.
When they first returned to Phoenix, they didn’t plan on reopening their Seattle crepe cafe. But just as Villa started to miss the sun in Seattle, once back in the Valley, he began to miss making crepes.
La Rue’s first pop-up in Phoenix was at Dialog, where Alexander currently works full time as a barista. Villa said he has also held occasional pop-ups at Sauvage Wine Bar and Gracie’s Tax Bar.
“We looked for spots in the neighborhood that we liked, that we knew were owned by other small business owners, because we wanted to support them. And it just fits the vibe for us,” Villa said.
Villa became a big fan of Monsoon Market, a local wine, snack and gift shop in midtown. He shopped there often enough to become friends with the owners. So, when the Monsoon Market owners opened Strip Mall coffee shop, the partnership with La Rue was immediate and natural.
What’s on the menu at La Rue?
Villa said that after moving back to Phoenix, he “wanted to elevate the quality” of his crepes, using natural and organic ingredients such as organic milk and eggs, gluten-free buckwheat flour and grass-fed butter.
La Rue offers both sweet and savory crepes each weekend at Strip Mall. Savory options include “the classic” made with prosciutto, gruyere, Jarlsberg, egg and herb aioli; the “fun guy” with mushrooms, leek confit, egg, gruyere, Jarlsberg and herb aioli; and “the works” made with all ingredients of both. Sweet crepes include homemade Nutella with banana or strawberry, butter sugar, and brie and jam.
My personal favorite might come as a surprise. Despite my self-ascribed sweet tooth, it’s the “fun guy” that keeps me coming back more than any other. The earthy and full taste of the mushrooms and egg with the tang of the herb aioli makes for a satisfying breakfast, especially when accompanied by one of Strip Mall’s hot pistachio lattes.
On certain special occasions, Villa offers “Euro snax,” which he said includes other tapas and street food inspired by the things he could purchase for a few euros during his travels in Europe. He also offers the occasional specialty menus, such as a McDonald’s breakfast-inspired lineup at a recent Gracie’s Tax Bar pop-up.
How to try La Rue crepes
La Rue crepes ($9.50 to $19.50) are available every Friday, Saturday and Sunday from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Strip Mall coffee shop in Phoenix, as well as at pop-ups announced on the cafe’s Instagram @laruephx.
Details: Strip Mall, 3508 N. Seventh St., Phoenix. @laruephx on Instagram.
Reach the reporter at endia.fontanez@gannett.com. Follow @EndiaFontanez on Instagram.
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