This is a new business that has been open for about a month. I noticed it on my way home from work,…read moreand later that afternoon came back to check it out. The format they've chosen is unique in Lavapies: it's cafe and bookshop (for art books, graphic novels, etc.) and downstairs, in the simply finished basement, is a gallery for edgy/protest/nonconformist art (3D and 2D).
The bookshop is well-stocked and laid out, with an attendant on duty to make recommendations or help you find a title. The cafe offers a variety of coffees from some of the world's more prolific coffee-producing regions, with prices ranging from 1.70 - 2.50 at the time of writing. The ambiance in the dining room toes the line between "classy" and "hipster"; the result is a room that promotes conversation with its offering of visual stimulation while soothing the clientele's aesthetic sensibilities.
We found the staff prompt, friendly, and quite happy to leave us to enjoy our visit. This felt very much like American coffee-house culture translated well.
The gallery area is lovely too, if not a little poorly lit in places. Hard to say, though, whether that was part of the installation at the time. The art itself was pretty cool: a local graffiti artist hung several pieces sprayed onto flattened cardboard boxes and the 3D stuff, the sculpture, while bizarre at times fit well with the gallery's theme.
TL;DR: Great place for coffee and conversation, and cheap to boot. Worth a stop!
