Red Bay Coffee’s Massive New Oakland Space Brings Coffee to the People | Eater SF

"Housed in a towering three-story former bank that was gutted by fire in 2014, this 11,000-square-foot space was intentionally chosen to bring specialty coffee and community programming to East Oakland: it features a sleek coffee bar with a Sanremo machine tuned for three distinct espressos, a plum-colored linoleum counter inspired by Copenhagen cafes, a hand-built pourover station, and room to serve full meals and warm baked goods. I appreciated how the design—bright, open, full of ferns and hanging plants, long windows and abundant outlets—prioritizes comfort (even offering cappuccinos in ceramic cups after a long pandemic of paper cups) and accessibility rather than exclusivity; the crown of the pillared building even bears Red Bay’s motto, “Beautiful Coffee To The People.” The cafe will host panels, workshops, filmed video content, visiting-chef pop-ups and music (opening festivities included Chinese lion dancers, a mariachi band and the Afro-Brazilian troupe SambaFunk!), and will develop an on-site food program that includes African-inspired savory hand pies; regular hours are 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., seven days a week." - Elazar Sontag