Popular coffee shop bringing beignets and more to this busy MS Coast location
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- PJ’s Coffee opens October 2025 in Ocean Springs near high-traffic U.S. 90.
- Owners designed a New Orleans-style café offering beignets and PJ’s drinks.
- Mayne family plans hands-on management, community events and seasonal items.
One of the busiest corners in South Mississippi soon will have a place to help drivers wake up each morning.
A new location of PJ’s Coffee is opening at 1112 Ames Ave. in Ocean Springs, just east of the intersection of Bienville Boulevard and Washington Avenue, near Burger King.
Melissa and Mark Mayne bought the property a year ago and recently started construction. The goal is to open by Cruisin’ The Coast in early October.
They chose the site carefully. The average daily traffic count along that stretch of U.S. 90 is 69,000 vehicles, according to the Mississippi Department of Transportation.
“It checked a lot of the boxes,”Mark said. “It gave us peace of mind when you look at all the key demographic, traffic, population, the growth.” Plus they didn’t have to lease the land and could build their own building there.
Small-town look and a taste of NOLA
The coffee shop won’t look like the others in South Mississippi, but will be more in keeping with the small town feel of Ocean Springs.
“It’s going to kind of look like a New Orleans cottage,” Melissa said, with purple accents and pretty siding and shutters. The restaurant will have a drive-through window and an indoor cafe with tables for those who want to linger over coffee and pastries or sandwiches.
Best of all, Melissa says, “We will be serving beignets,” which is a treat few if any other PJ’s in Mississippi have on their menus. The pastries will be available for breakfast and throughout the day along with PJ’s café au lait for that true New Orleans combination from the company headquartered in Mandeville, Louisiana.
The menu has a big variety of coffees along with seasonal specialties like king cake latte and Southern wedding cake coffee served hot, iced or frozen. They also have a selection of energy drinks and caffeine-free beverages.
At breakfast, add a blueberry muffin — the favorite of PJ’s — or choose from croissants, bagels, scones and cinnamon rolls..
The grab-and-go egg bites come with bacon or veggie and three cheeses. Breakfast and lunch sandwiches round out the menu.
A new lifestyle
The Maynes moved their family to South Mississippi to open this new coffee shop in Ocean Springs
“It’s actually our second franchise. It’s our first PJ’s franchise.” Melissa said. The couple owned and operated an indoor playground for kids in New Orleans for seven years. They sold that business in April 2024 and decided to buy a PJ’s franchise because they really liked the brand.
“We knew we could move to the Gulf Coast. We thought it was a no-brainer,” she said. Ocean Springs is a lot like New Orleans, only a lot smaller, she said, with a lot of festivals and a good atmosphere to raise a family.
They will start looking for staff in early September. They plan to be very hands-on at the restaurant to ensure consistency so every time customers get a cup of coffee or a sandwich it’s going to be good. They envision people who live in nearby neighborhoods walking or riding their golf cart to the coffee shop and others who live farther away using the app to order ahead so their coffee and breakfast are ready as they head to work.
The shop also will have monthly activities like story time, trivia and music in cooperation with other local businesses to connect with the community over coffee and fun.
This story was originally published July 22, 2025 at 5:00 AM.
