Maison Cafe and Doheny Cafe, the beloved Dana Point eateries of chef-owner Danielle Kuhn, will close their doors at the end of the year, with Dec. 24 slated as the final day of operation.
“What a hard post to post, but after seven years of serving you, as you filled our seats and our hearts, Maison and Doheny Cafe will be closing at the end of this year,” wrote Kuhn in an announcement posted to the restaurants’ social media platforms. “This was such a hard decision to make, but one that we know is for the best for now. Maison will open again one day and she will shine brighter than ever.”
The closures of Maison Cafe and Doheny Cafe, roughly a mile apart from each other, trace back to the changing landscape of the restaurant industry, according to Kuhn, who also owns Giana Bakery & Provisions in town. In a farewell newsletter, she detailed the financial pressure that made running three concepts unsustainable, even for an owner who had “survived and thrived through the pandemic.”
The chef-owner admitted that while part of her feels frustrated not “being able to figure out how to make all the pieces fit together,” the broader economic struggles facing the industry proved inescapable. Kuhn pointed to increasing overheads as a main factor. “The cost of goods has done nothing but increase since covid,” she wrote while also noting “the cost of insurance and taxes.” She stressed that even “the little restaurant that could” eventually hit a breaking point.
Operating in an industry where profit margins are already notoriously thin (a pre-tax profit margin of roughly 5% for a typical restaurant, according to a 2025 report from the National Restaurant Association), she found that “all overhead and cost of goods continuing to increase at a more rapid rate than the industry has even seen” made it nearly impossible to “stay profitable no matter how tight a ship you run.”
The additional difficulty of managing “three tight ships” ultimately forced her to make the painful decision. “Quite frankly, it has become clear to me amidst all the joys and trials, that I need to take a massive step back if I want to grow any further.”
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For now, Kuhn will focus her time and energy on Giana Bakery & Provisions (where you can find “absolutely outstanding” sourdough bread, according to former Register restaurant critic Brad Johnson, as well as a slew of pastries, pizzas, pastas and more), while hoping to step back from “a constant state of treading water.”
Throughout her announcement, Kuhn anchored her decision with a powerful sense of personal faith. Acknowledging a chaotic yet remarkable life path (from dropping out of high school to becoming a single mom), she expressed gratitude that “God has His hand on everything I did.”
Maison Cafe, which opened on Del Prado in the spring of 2023, relocated from its former space on Pacific Coast Highway now occupied by Doheny Cafe.
Giana Bakery & Provisions can be found at 34146 Pacific Coast Highway, Dana Point.