A block away from historic Marietta Square sits a new coffee shop with unusual hours meant for night owls, college students, and third-shift workers seeking space to gather, work, and study.
Ika Xiao, who immigrated to the U.S. from Shanghai, China, opened Terminus 72 on Polk Street in early July. But unlike most coffee shops that open with typical daytime hours, Terminus 72 opens at 9 p.m. and closes at 5 a.m.
Xiao opened the “experimental cafe” in Marietta to showcase Chinese culture in the city. When you walk through the door of Terminus 72, you’re met with Chinese calligraphy as part of the design, matcha KitKats on the tables, and soft Asian instrumental music playing in the background. The atmosphere is warm and eclectic, with colorful murals of flora and fauna adorning the walls. The calm, cozy space seats just 24 people.
She came up with the name by combining Atlanta’s original moniker, Terminus, with the seventh month of the year (July) and her birthday (July 2).
Terminus 72 serves non-alcoholic drinks, from iced lattes to Chinese oolong to Japanese sencha (green tea). Xiao crafts each drink by hand with a manual espresso machine, French press, or pour-over. She wants to lean into the nostalgia of simpler times, especially in the current era of automatic and “grab-and-go” coffee orders, something Terminus 72 doesn’t offer.
The shop features a small food menu divided into “quickies” like curry ramen and “experimental” dishes such as “Slam-Dump Shanghai,” or vegan dumplings in broth.
DIY and secondhand furniture are spread throughout the small space, with no outdoor seating available. When you arrive, you pick up a number, find a seat, decide what you want to order, then approach the counter. Sometimes it can take people between 20 to 30 minutes before ordering, but no one seems to mind the wait.
On a recent visit, a wide range of people settled in at Terminus 72 for the night, including area college students looking for a place to study, EMT workers on a break from runs to nearby Kennestone Hospital, and friends meeting after work to catch up.
Chattahoochee Tech student Gisele Lopez discovered the late-night spot on social media.
“I thought [the operating hours] were a typo or something, but I saw it on TikTok and confirmed that it was actually open 9 p.m. to 5 a.m.”
Xiao said the viral TikTok video generated so much attention that customers have been flocking to the small cafe in droves. But as much as she appreciates the business, she’s hesitant about the sudden spotlight.
West Cobb resident Matt Stigall is one of Xiao’s regulars. He helps out from time to time, handing out numbers or tending to customers waiting outside to keep the coffee shop from exceeding capacity.
Stigall said he’s thankful for third spaces such as Terminus 72: “All the night places, not just in Georgia, but all over the country have shut down. There’s not a lot of places to be at at night, so when I saw this, I thought, ‘Yeah, we definitely need this.’ I’m here probably once a week.”
As a late-night spot, Terminus 72 also gives locals an alternative to the bar scene, which is exactly what Roswell resident and voice actor Andrew Lander was looking for: a place to work, meal prep, and unwind.
“After the World Cup was here, I felt like I really needed more of that community. And doing that over drinks is one way, but it seems that the people here are more artsy and low-key,” Lander said.
Xiao hopes that Terminus 72 becomes a space for the community, possibly for book clubs to meet, to host art events, and even somewhere she can conduct her own interviews with guests in the future.
“I want this to be very local, something that we can all connect in, which is why I believe it’s so effective because people are like, ‘Wow, this is possible. We have a second home. We have a third space,'” Xiao said.
Terminus 72, 46 Polk St., Marietta. Open Tuesday through Saturday, 9 p.m. to 5 a.m.
