Neighbor News
New owner takes over downtown coffee venue
Former King Street Coffee becomes Second Nature Coffee Co.
The new owner of Second Nature Coffee Co., formerly King Street Coffee, held a grand opening on Sept. 6 for the Leesburg community. It opened its doors in early August.
"It took us 10 days to turn around the business," said new owner Belal El-Atari, from the time that the old coffee shop closed in late July. Bright white paint work at the entrance, the removal of some trees pressed up against the building, and a newly constructed walking path along the parking lot are some of the changes made. New landscaping has been added and there are new black chairs with cup holders outside at the patio area.
El-Atari said he plans to build a second patio sitting area toward the back left corner of the parking lot in the future.
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The inside of the building remains largely the same, along with the menu. There are plans to start making popular syrups in-house and adding herbal teas.
El-Atari said he hopes to soon add air-conditioning and will do some modifications to the counter/cashier area in coming months to make the small indoor space more spacious when customers walk in so they are not cramped waiting in line to be served.
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El-Atari is leasing the building. He also owns and operates five Buffalo Wing Factory’s locations, one being in Leesburg in the Compass Creek Shopping Center.
El-Atari lives in Leesburg and frequented King Street Coffee. "I've been watching the progression of the coffee shop for some time and always thought it would be a great place to run a business," he said. "So when the space became available at the end of July, we made an offer to the landlord."
Leesburg residents Michael and Dawn O'Connor are the landlords. The O'Connors also formerly owned Leesburg Diner in downtown for a number of years, which they sold to Gary O’Hanlon and Jennifer Demetrio in 2023 who reopened the business as Leesburg Diner by Cafe Kindred.
Aside from some cosmetic changes, the former staff has stayed on, transitioning under new ownership. Even the water bowl and dog biscuits are still on the outside porch.
The building was originally a single family home built in 1900 and was converted to a business. Two apartments are still occupied above the coffee shop. The building has been continuously run as a coffee shop for 30 years by different owners and is a much-loved congregating space for Leesburg residents who consider it a downtown staple.
