When Crave met Kookaburra

By Sarah Glynn | gargoyle@flagler.edu

St. Augustine is home to many unique, small businesses. A few standouts include Crave Food Truck and The Kookaburra Coffee Shop.

These two businesses have joined forces to provide the people of St. Augustine with great coffee and healthy eating all in one place. The new Kookaburra location beachside now includes a portion of the building where Crave now resides. These two businesses have chosen to work together rather than against each other, teaming up at their new location.

“We’ve been friends with Spencer and Meghan (owners of the Kookaburra) for years,” says Andres Guardiola, owner of Crave Food Truck. “We have similar business models, non-competing. They have coffee and pastries we do healthy eating only. It seemed like a good synergy and union.”

Both businesses are well established in St. Augustine. For the Kookaburra, this will be their third location, and for Crave, it will be their second. The new location opened up on A1A and 3rd street in the first week of September. The new beachside location features both of their full menus, with seating both inside and outside. Both businesses have been interested in having a location beachside, but it never worked out until now. Lunch was the slow time for the Kookaburra, who mainly only offers pastries and Aussie pies. Having Crave there has attracted new business without adding any new items to their menu.

The two stores tried teaming up before, but the timing was always off.

“They (The Kookaburra) had approached us about doing a few pop up events when they opened their 312 location but the timing never worked out. Then, when the beachside location opened up, things just worked.”

This beachside location has taken both companies away from historic, tourist-driven downtown to the more beachy, residential side of St. Augustine Beach. Guardiola said that locals were the main target and that tourists were just a bonus.

The new location is now open on A1A and 3rd street, just down the road from Cafe 11. The Kookaburra Coffee Shop portion is open until 9 p.m. during the week, 10 p.m. on weekends. The Crave portion is open 11-3 every day except Sunday.