The shutter Sapphire Photo at 2761 Mission St., the location of the new Tea Art cafe.

A tea cafe is taking the place of the now-shuttered Sapphire Photo on Mission Street, according to public documents.

Tea Art — the name of the new spot at 2761 Mission St. near 24th Street — will serve “tea, coffee, and snacks” and can seat some 20 people in a narrow 930 square foot space. The site used to host the photo shop Sapphire Photo until it closed in May 2015, and has been vacant since.

The restaurant’s owner, Terry Chan, did not return requests for comment. Public records show extensive renovation proposed for the interior space, but it is unclear when the cafe will open up.

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Joe was born in Sweden, where half of his family received asylum after fleeing Pinochet, and then spent his early childhood in Chile; he moved to Oakland when he was eight. He attended Stanford University for political science and worked at Mission Local as a reporter after graduating. He then spent time at YIMBY Action and as a partner for the strategic communications firm The Worker Agency. He rejoined Mission Local as an editor in 2023. You can reach him on Signal @jrivanob.99.

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