Troy Scoma, the owner of Cactus Sports and ASU Alumni, has been a mainstay on Mill Avenue since he first opened Cactus Sports in 1992 in the Andre Building with his brother Jeff. In the last 27 years, Troy bought out his brother to become the sole owner of Cactus Sports and he moved his store to its present location, doubling the size of the store. Cactus Sports focuses on adding personal touches that encourages their guests to shop locally.
Troy, definitely knows Downtown Tempe like the back of his hand. That's why he's the perfect person to give some insight on how to experience Downtown Tempe like a local!
Entertaining in-town guests or taking a day off to hand in downtown Tempe would start with breakfast at Snooze, An A.M. Eatery. So many benedicts, so many choices! Assuming it's not 110 degrees, and to walk off some of those calories, it's a fairly quick and easy hike up A Mountain (Hayden Butte) which really has some amazing views of the Valley.
Lunch is an easy decision and no visit would be complete without eating at The Chuckbox. This place has been open since the early 70's and they have the most amazing charbroiled burgers! My fav is their signature Tijuana Torpedo (ground beef with jalapeno jack cheese inside and green chili on top). Any time I'm chatting it up with out-of-town guests in my store, I frequently advise them that a visit to The Chuckbox because it will change their life.
Walking around Mill Avenue is always interesting for window shopping and people watching. It's a short walk to Tempe Town Lake and Tempe Beach Park. Many times a year there are festivals or live musical performances to check out and you can catch some amazing sunsets down there before grabbing some dinner and drinks on Mill.
There are so many great options for dinner on Mill Avenue, but I'm a sucker for Italian food, so I like to visit Caffe Boa Bistro and Wine Bar. They have a great selection of wines, make their pasta fresh, in-house, and try to use all natural ingredients. Walking off that dinner is pretty easy on Mill because there are so many choices for bar hopping!
Some of my favorites are House of Tricks (they have a super unique ambiance and patio), Pedal Haus Brewery makes some great beer and they always have multiple games on. Culinary Dropout at The Yard makes some fantastic cocktails along with a cool area to play games with friends.
Bonus: All summer long Cactus Sports is treating their customers to Buy One Item, Get One 50% Off. A perfect opportunity to stock up for football season!