Every downtown shop, family roaster, and made-from-scratch bakery has a story. These are the Eastside small businesses we think you should know, written like a friend walking you to the front door.
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A wood-fired Neapolitan pizzeria and brewpub inside downtown Chandler's historic former post office, built on a scratch kitchen with no freezers or microwaves and 30-plus Arizona craft beers on tap. A relaxed, food-forward date-night favorite.
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A volunteer-run, weekend-only rail yard in southeast Chandler, home to a dozen restored passenger cars you can walk through, a Baldwin-built 1906 steam locomotive, and rolling stock on the National Register of Historic Places.
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A veteran-owned, family-run craft cidery in downtown Mesa, founded by brothers Josh and Jason Duren on Veterans Day 2017. Rotating small-batch ciders, wood-fired pizza from Myke's Pizza, and a 22 Jumps cider that donates a dollar a glass to brain injury research.
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A family-run American breakfast and lunch cafe in Mesa, serving all-day breakfast and famous homemade desserts since 1984. Warm, unpretentious, and the kind of place regulars keep quiet so tables stay easy to find.
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A family-run Italian deli and grocery in an easy-to-miss South Scottsdale strip center, serving house-made sausage, meatball subs, and imported Italian staples since 1972, now three generations deep.
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A breakfast-and-brunch staple in Gilbert's Farmhouse Village, serving farm-fresh comfort food from an original 1920s Sears kit home since 2004, now run by the founder's niece in a handoff that kept it all in the family.
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An all-day restaurant, bar, and market in downtown Chandler with an Art Deco dining room and a seed-oil-free scratch kitchen. Weekend brunch with carrot cake pancakes, sourdough pizzas from a 130-year-old starter, and craft cocktails that make it a date-night favorite.
Spotlight
A downtown Chandler brewpub where rescued macaws and cockatoos live right on the patio. House-brewed beer, scratch-made pub food, a rooftop bar, and weekend live music, all wrapped around a bird rescue sanctuary giving abandoned parrots a second chance.
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An Old Town Scottsdale institution since 1958, the Sugar Bowl is a family-owned, bubblegum-pink soda fountain serving classic sundaes, towering banana splits, and comfort food across three generations of the Huntress family.
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A wood-fired kitchen, full bar, and weekend brunch tucked inside a 1930s grocery store in the heart of downtown Gilbert. Independent, lively, and loved by locals, it covers both brunch and date night in one historic room.
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A Navajo-owned, family-run frybread restaurant in downtown Mesa, serving award-winning Navajo tacos, lamb sandwiches, and sweet frybreads since growing out of a roadside stand on Power Road.
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A family-owned, crop-to-cup coffee roaster in historic downtown Chandler, roasting beans grown on the owners' own family farm in Brazil since 2015.
If there is a local shop, cafe, or maker in Gilbert, Chandler, Mesa, or Scottsdale you love, tell us about them. We would love to shine a light on more of the businesses that make the Eastside special.
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