Two companies had never operated a store in Colorado before this fall. Both picked the same few miles of southeast Aurora for their first one. 85°C Bakery Cafe opened at 2767 S. Parker Road on September 18. Two weeks later, TESO Life opened a store of about 25,000 square feet at The Gardens on Havana. Neither showed up out of nowhere. All year, independent bakeries, tea shops and grocers had been signing leases in the same shopping centers along South Havana Street. The two chains joined a corridor that was already restocking itself.
Two Colorado debuts in two weeks
The Denver Post reported that the Aurora 85°C is the Taiwanese chain's first in Colorado and its 100th in the U.S. Founded in 2003, the company has been selling in the U.S. since 2008. Its menu covers fresh breads, pastries, cakes, coffee, tea and boba. The best-known item is probably the Sea Salt Cream Vietnamese Iced Coffee, which went viral on social media. The staples are the Milk Pudding Bread, Choco Bun, Marble Taro and Egg Tart. The store is in the Parker Commons center.
TESO Life opened at 1150 S. Ironton St. with a grand opening that ran October 2 through 4. It sells beauty products, snacks, home goods, toys, stationery and pet supplies. According to the Denver Post's coverage, the opening went viral on social media and drew long lines. The company also told the Post that the Aurora store is nearly twice the size of most of its other locations. In a statement to the paper, the company explained why it chose Aurora:
"Its vibrant, diverse community and position as a retail destination in the Denver metro make it a natural fit."
The phrase that matters is "retail destination." A store that big, entering a new state, needs shoppers who will drive to it. TESO is betting that South Havana already pulls them. The crowds didn't end after opening weekend, either: the Post said the aisles were still crowded on October 12. TESO's own announcement lists hours of 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. daily.
The independents kept opening all year
Most of 2026's openings on the corridor were smaller businesses. The Havana Business Improvement District, which runs as On Havana Street, handles business development and events along the corridor and keeps a running log of openings. Combined with local food coverage, that log shows a new food or retail opening almost every season this year.
| When | Business | Address | What it sells |
|---|---|---|---|
| Early 2026 | Dave's Hot Chicken | 10552 E. Arizona Place, The Gardens on Havana | Nashville-style fried chicken |
| April 2026 | 3456Tea | 2790 S. Havana St., Suite U | Korean drinks, desserts and snacks |
| June 2026 | Dunkin' | S. Havana St. | Coffee and donuts |
| Open by July 2026 | Sultan Turkish Bakery | 1930 S. Havana St., #1 | Turkish breads, pastries, baklava, coffee |
| August 2026 | Havana Burger | 938 S. Havana St. | Burgers |
| Open by October 2026 | Mazaya Foods | 2872 S. Havana St. | Halal meats, Mediterranean baked goods, international groceries, produce, deli |
3456Tea held soft-opening and grand-opening events April 15 through 19. Mazaya Foods is the newest on the list. It's a full supermarket, with a deli and a bakery case alongside the meat counter.
The 2026 openings also build on what came in 2025. That year, the corridor added DAISO's Japanese general-goods store at 2353 S. Havana St. in March. It also gained L Café & Food Court's Armenian pastries and sandwiches at 1930 S. Havana St. and Orejano's empanadas at 800 S. Havana St. Bricks & Minifigs, a LEGO buy-sell-trade shop, had its grand opening at The Gardens on Havana on November 1, 2025. Maiwand Kabob, which serves Afghan and Mediterranean halal food, opened nearby that October. A shopper who first came to DAISO in 2025 now has a Turkish bakery, a Korean tea shop and a TESO Life on the same street.
Almost everything new moved into a building that was already there
The 2026 openings have one thing in common. Nearly all of them took over existing space instead of building new.
The district's 2026 roundup shows that pattern across the corridor:
- The Gardens on Havana added Dave's Hot Chicken in a 2,600-square-foot suite. The restaurant was announced in April 2024 and started construction in summer 2025, and now TESO Life is in the same center.
- VASA Fitness held its grand opening on January 17, 2026, in the former Dick's Sporting Goods.
- Havana Burger replaced the Hamburger Stand at 938 S. Havana St.
- South Havana Shops has new paint, a new facade and new signage under way. It also signed new leases with Samosa Cafe, HairZone hair and beauty supply, and Juba Fashions.
- Sultan Turkish Bakery opened in the Birchtree Shopping Center at Havana Jewel.
- GoodTimes remodeled and added new murals and signage, and Havana Plaza updated its facade and signs.
That's why the chains could arrive so quickly. A company entering Colorado can lease a big, finished space in an established center without waiting through ground-up construction. TESO's store is in The Gardens on Havana, and 85°C's is in Parker Commons. Neither required a new building, and both already had neighbors that draw shoppers.
A Saturday route through this year's arrivals
To try the new places in one trip, go roughly south to north and plan to reach TESO around its 11 a.m. opening.
- 85°C Bakery Cafe, 2767 S. Parker Road. Start with coffee and a pastry. The Egg Tart and the Sea Salt Cream coffee are the items the chain is known for.
- Mazaya Foods, 2872 S. Havana St. Pick up groceries and Mediterranean baked goods.
- 3456Tea, 2790 S. Havana St. Stop for a Korean drink or dessert.
- Sultan Turkish Bakery, 1930 S. Havana St. Grab baklava and bread for later.
- TESO Life, 1150 S. Ironton St. Doors open at 11 a.m. Based on the October crowds the Post described, getting there at opening is the simplest way to avoid the busiest aisles.
- Dave's Hot Chicken or Maiwand Kabob, The Gardens on Havana. Both are in the same center as TESO, so lunch can be a short walk.
- Havana Burger, 938 S. Havana St. This is the northern end of the route, if you have room for a second lunch.
What's still in the pipeline
The corridor isn't finished changing, though some of what's ahead runs on longer schedules than a restaurant opening.
- HaBeeBi Scoops, a dessert shop at 2222 S. Havana St., was listed as under construction in the district's September update. No opening date has been announced.
- QuikTrip is replacing the former Sam's No. 3, which was demolished in August 2026. The site plan is for a 5,312-square-foot convenience store with a fuel canopy, and the expected opening is 2027.
- District marker signs with On Havana Street branding are on the district's schedule. One is planned for South Havana Shops, and another at Havana Auto Parts is targeted for late 2026 to early 2027.
- The district's annual stakeholder meeting is Thursday, November 12, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., at The Stampede, 2430 S. Havana St.
The outdoor season is over. This year's free Havana Street Night Market ran on the last Saturday of each month from May through September at Leezakaya, 2710 S. Havana St., and ended September 26. Through the winter, the corridor's draw will be the shops and kitchens that opened this year, starting with the two that had never been in Colorado before.
If you own a rental near South Havana, or have been wondering how a busier corridor affects what your home is worth, Colorado Dream Properties can help. We manage rentals across Aurora and the south metro, and we'll give you a straight answer based on local data. Request a free home valuation or property management quote, and we'll walk you through the numbers.
