Downtown Mesa guide: 6 restaurants, bars and attractions to try

☕ Coffee: Stop by Jarrod's Coffee, Tea & Gallery, which just moved off Main Street to a darling bungalow at University Drive and Macdonald. It has plenty of cozy corners for enjoying your drink of choice.

📚 Morning activity: Browse the 5,000 square feet of treasures at Book Gallery, an overflowing bookstore with rare finds.

🥪 Lunch: Grab a bite at my favorite sandwich shop, Worth Takeaway. I almost always choose the Buffalo Chicken, which is delicious on a roll or as a salad.

🖼️ Afternoon activity: Wander the halls of the Mesa Contemporary Arts Museum, an underrated (and free!) gallery.

🍛 Dinner: Head to H Mart in the Asian District, where you'll find more than a half-dozen food stalls like Maisen Katsu (Japanese) and Da Pan Danny's Kitchen (Korean).

🍻 Late night fun: Chart a pub crawl through downtown Mesa's burgeoning bar scene. Try a unique sipper at Cider Corps, a locally brewed ale at Phantom Fox Beer Co. and a fancy cocktail at Espiritu.