One of our Top 10 Roasters of 2023 quietly opened a new coffee bar last week. Here’s everything I know so far.
📸 credit House Of Funk and the ridiculously talented Alison Ensworth.
If you’re one of the many folks who have been warmly invited (read: heartlessly forced) to return to the office and abandon your ketchup stained WFH onesie, you understand the struggle.
Could there ever be incentive enough to put on a large shoulder padded power suit and re-enter the daily grind of Wall Dunsmuir Street?
How about a brand-new all-day specialty coffee shop, right inside the building?
Enter FUNK Coffee Bar, the latest from House of Funk and a sight for the sore eyes of those summoned daily to Vancouver’s financial district.
Now, you know I love their brewery/roastery in North Van, and I’ve had some incredible coffee there — but with its barrels, numerous taps, and late opening hours, the place is definitely more of a brewery than a coffee shop.
This new venture, meanwhile, is all about the coffee.
First off, they’re open at 7am, ready to revive the sleep-deprived and productivity-driven early maniacs who don’t realize that life is way better after 10am.
They’re slinging espresso from a La Marzocco Linea PB right now but it’ll soon be replaced by a sleek Modbar system… of which I will own in my house one day.
The coffee menu includes all the usual specialty espresso drinks, as well as drip, pour over, and soon, nitro cold brew. All made from House of Funk beans, lightly roasted in small batches.
You can buy said beans in their trademark cans and bags along with a growing selection of brew gear.
To complement the coffee, the team have developed an elevated food program with the greats at Novella and Bar Susu.
There are croissants from Butterboom, cookies and muffins from Novell. Bagels, along with soup, fully loaded sandwiches, and other dishes to come.
I had the Dulce de Leche cookie with my espresso, which was sweet, salty, and perfectly chewy.
They’ve got a catering program too, for conferences and events held in the building.
Think how much better attendance would be at the next board meeting if you could order a pot of House of Funk coffee up to the office?
On top of that, there’s House of Funk beer on tap, wine by the bottle, and rotating cocktails on offer from 11am until close (currently 3pm, soon to be 7pm).
I went to Italy this summer and let me tell you, don’t sleep on wine with breakfast.
There’s plenty of seating and lots of windows from which you can watch the local sport of traffic and parking negotiations on Dunsmuir Street below.
The space, along with the two board rooms attached, are available to rent — and since it’s right next to the Burrard Skytrain station, it’s a super-accessible venue for parties, workshops, conferences, etc.
The team is adding more and more colour to the place each day, and planning lots of coffee-related events, so follow @funk.coffeebar for updates.
Be prepared — downtown Vancouver is about to wake the FUCK up!
Wait, “FUNK” up.
Sorry, Mum.
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