Everything about the shop is designed to promote engagement, to gently nudge folks out of their coffee shop comfort zones and into a more experimental headspace. Sure, someone could go in and just order a drip coffee to go, but they would be missing the Bentonville lab at its best. Five white Nuova Simonelli Mythos One Clima Pros, four white Baratza Fortes, and one Mahlkönig EK 43 (white, of course) occupy the three islands, serving as the primary grinders for the Modbar, Seraphim, and Steampunk stations, respectively.Īnd with 11 hoppers in total, customers aren’t given a freedom of choice so much as a mandate. Even the three white Acaia Pearl scales at the pour-over counter space have been inset for maxi-minimalism.Īnd all grinders-the only things that seemingly can’t be put below deck-have been moved to three white hexagonal laminate island bars around which the 360° counter revolves, with each node performing a specific function. And manual brew duties are split between four bright white Curtis Seraphim and two white Alpha Dominche Steampunks. The espresso bar is comprised of three Modbar espresso modules end-capped by two steam modules. Anything that can be moved under the counter has been, leaving hyper-clean, open workspaces at every point of service. This feeling is heightened further by Onyx’s glut of machines-enough to give pause to the most hardened of gear geeks-and their placement around the bar. This raucous hello imparts a sense of “otherness” to even the lackadaisical onlooker. Dark walnut slats of various sizes run up the adjacent walls and across the ceiling above the coffee bar, creating a natural frame for Onyx’s aesthetically intense introduction to Bentonville patrons. The 360-degree edgeless bar-the shop’s centerpiece and truly a sight unto itself-is covered in one inch white hexagonal laminate and is cast against a backdrop of a three motif-ed wall-the first third comprised of hickory paneling, the second concrete with a neon sign proudly boasting a cursive “Onyx Coffee Lab”, and the third, a navy and mustard cubic pattern. Upon entering through the glass doors, there’s an immediate sensory overload of shapes and textures. Their new design-heavy Bentonville lab is the apropos-of-nothing sort of a place that makes you say, “I have no idea where the hell we are, but we sure aren’t Here.” “Here”, in this instance, just so happens to be Northwest Arkansas.īrought to life by owners Jon and Andrea Allen, the beautiful coffee fever dream that is the new Onyx Coffee Lab is art at high volumes. The newest shop from Onyx Coffee Lab, however, requires no such context. Half of knowing a shop is understanding the place from which it sprouted, and much of what makes a shop truly interesting would be completely overlooked were its history erased. There is an intentional gap between bar and ceiling to accentuate the material rich back wall of hickory, exposed concrete and concrete tile.As a coffee writer covering the southern part of the United States, where cafe cultures aren’t quite as well-known as our neighbors on the coasts, I find myself expending quite a few words to contextualize a coffee shop. The grinding towers are also organized based on the type of coffee brewed and this sets in motion the entire structure of the bar. The bar is organized by three grinding towers which allow a porous and fluid workflow between baristas. The island bar is a monolithic tiled figure contrasting the filigreed wood ceiling above. Gaps occur in the ceiling and wall to regulate lighting, airflow, fire suppression and merchandise. The screen is composed of several softwood species in 2x and 1x thicknesses and of varied depth from 1x4's to 2x12's. The project is organized by an emphatic longitudinal wood screen which simultaneously thirds the space, houses a community meeting room, accents the island bar, and integrates the merchandise wall. The project has two primary elements which dictate spatial organization, movement, and use. Onyx Coffee Lab is a 2,300 square foot coffee bar located in the Midtown Building on the Bentonville Arkansas Downtown square. Bradley Edwards Architect recently completed a tenant finish out in downtown Bentonville AR.
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