Eat Beat Interrogation with Devon McConville of Matilda’s All-Day Café

After walking away from a finance career in 2015, Devon McConville longed for more fulfilling work. While trying to figure out her next move, she took a job in a local coffee shop. “I absolutely fell in love with coffee and connecting with people,” she says. In 2018, McConville’s enthusiasm led her to open First Place Coffee, a mobile coffee truck operating out of a vintage 1970s Chevy P10. After building a loyal following, she opened Matilda’s All Day Café in February 2026, a charming, bustling eatery in a historic bungalow in Phoenix’s Roosevelt Historic Neighborhood. We recently talked to McConville about her new venture.

Why did you take the leap from food truck to restaurant?

I guess looking back, I’ve taken a couple of really big leaps. The first leap was really scary, leaving a secure job and career after spending all those years working my way up the ladder. I just realized that there was more inside of me, something that felt more meaningful in my life. Then, taking this other big leap from a tiny coffee truck to a fully functioning café was also a scary risk, but I felt very confident in what we had built with First Place Coffee.

What inspired the Matilda’s concept?

I was inspired when I traveled to other cities and would see all-day cafes open from morning to evening where you’d come and have your coffee or espresso and then have a really beautiful salad and a glass of wine for lunch and dinner. I thought this concept would do well in Phoenix and resonate with people like it had with me during my travels.

Who is Matilda? 

When I got the coffee truck, I felt like it needed its own identity and name, so I named her Matilda and it just kind of stuck. The café is the continuation of our story and where we come from, and because we’re doing so much more out of this space we decided to call it Matilda’s.

Tell us about your chef, Matthew Celaya. 

He owns a pop up called Más Amable, where he does wood-fired style cooking. I went to his dinners and was always blown away by him and his cooking. So when the time came to team up, I immediately thought of Matt. 

What’s a fun fact about you?

I was a star soccer player and a runner growing up!