For nearly a century, 32 West Portal Ave. meant one thing: Papenhausen Hardware. Soon, that familiar storefront will trade drill bits for drip coffee, as Hardware Coffee Co. moves in with a built-in flower shop, giving the corridor another sign of just how fast the avenue is changing.
The new cafe, which will carry the name Hardware Coffee Co. as a nod to its predecessor, is aiming for a late April debut, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. Owner Sam Pederson, a former tech worker, told the Chronicle the shop plans to open daily from 6 AM to 6 PM, pour coffee from Oakland roaster Grand Coffee Roasters, and serve food along with beer and wine. Pederson said the project is funded by his immediate family rather than outside investors, and the Chronicle reports the business is expected to employ about 20 people.
From Ghirardelli Square to West Portal
The company’s own site shows that Hardware Coffee Co. first popped up as a kiosk at Ghirardelli Square in 2025 and lists West Portal as an upcoming all-day cafe with room carved out for a florist. Hardware Coffee Co. also sells packaged beans and notes that the West Portal location will host private events in the evenings, signaling a mix of daytime counter service and occasional after-hours bookings. The site copy makes it clear the plan has evolved since the West Portal page first went live.
Florist, fit-out and staffing
Artist Sandra Bautista, founder of floral studio Dasluz, will oversee the flower shop portion of the space, according to her website. The interior design was handled by Brittany Busacca, the San Francisco Chronicle reports, and the partners expect to hire roughly 20 people across front- and back-of-house roles. The floral collaboration is meant to give the cafe a handcrafted, neighborhood-forward feel instead of a purely corporate-style buildout.
Where it fits on the avenue
Hardware Coffee Co. will join a West Portal food-and-drink scene that has quietly been filling in over the past few years, from George’s Donuts & Merriment to neighborhood favorite Ballast Coffee. Just down the street, a proposal to replace the Empire Theater with a nine-story residential project has kept debates about the corridor’s future very much alive, as reported by a new nine-story apartment complex. The arrival of Hardware Coffee Co. adds another chapter to West Portal’s ongoing mix of legacy businesses and newer concepts…