By Guest Reporter Twelve Gauge
The new year means a fresh face in a location that has hosted a seemingly neverending series of failed eating establishments. The latest in this series is Ypperlig Café and Izakaya, hereafter referred to as Ypperlig Café for the sake of brevity, which seems deeply unlikely to break this trend given its lack of branding. The storefront has no indication of the café within, except for a cheap white plastic sign on the sidewalk outside with the following amateurishly stenciled in black paint: "コーヒーと酒 ｃｏｆｆｅｅ ａｎｄ ａｌｃｏｈｏｌ". The only other indication is a small piece of paper taped to the corner of one window that confusingly reads: "営業時間はいつでもです。Business Hours: From whenever we open to whenever we close."
The interior layout and décor are entirely unchanged from the last business that operated here, a cozy pub that didn't even last a year before shuttering. The circular bar demands immediate attention not only for its elegant hardwood surface but also for the young baristas scrambling to service their surrounding patrons. Filling the rest of the space is a maze of quiet, three-walled booths given a modicum of privacy by threadbare and stained curtains. Each booth is filled with an unremarkable table and two uncomfortable benches, and the walls are decorated with the kind of eclectic curios that scream: "I found this in the trash and now it's art!"
Ypperlig Café offers a whopping two choices of coffee beans, one of which is roasted on-premises, prepared to the customer's preference. For the more discerning clientele, Ypperlig Café also offers the choice of regular sake or a seasonal variety, both produced by Ice Queen Sake. Finally, the scant menu offerings are limited to either fried chicken cartilage or dumplings.
Lars Ando, a retired Star Army technician, began building and maintaining espresso machines last year and saw opportunity knocking when one of his clients, the previous occupant of the current Ypperlig Café location, went belly-up. He bought their equipment at a firesale discount and acquired the location, turning it into Ypperlig Café, which is sure to be the shortest-lived business in the location's history. In an exclusive interview, he had this to say: "Why are you talking to me? I don't own the place, I just started the cooperative that does."
The Ypperlig Café Workers Cooperative manages the Ypperlig Café and Izakaya gives every employee, including its founder, an equal share in the decision making and any profits. This is likely the reason they haven't settled on any kind of branding, though mysteriously this doesn't seem to bother the customers who pack the narrow aisles from whenever they open to whenever they close.
The new year means a fresh face in a location that has hosted a seemingly neverending series of failed eating establishments. The latest in this series is Ypperlig Café and Izakaya, hereafter referred to as Ypperlig Café for the sake of brevity, which seems deeply unlikely to break this trend given its lack of branding. The storefront has no indication of the café within, except for a cheap white plastic sign on the sidewalk outside with the following amateurishly stenciled in black paint: "コーヒーと酒 ｃｏｆｆｅｅ ａｎｄ ａｌｃｏｈｏｌ". The only other indication is a small piece of paper taped to the corner of one window that confusingly reads: "営業時間はいつでもです。Business Hours: From whenever we open to whenever we close."
The interior layout and décor are entirely unchanged from the last business that operated here, a cozy pub that didn't even last a year before shuttering. The circular bar demands immediate attention not only for its elegant hardwood surface but also for the young baristas scrambling to service their surrounding patrons. Filling the rest of the space is a maze of quiet, three-walled booths given a modicum of privacy by threadbare and stained curtains. Each booth is filled with an unremarkable table and two uncomfortable benches, and the walls are decorated with the kind of eclectic curios that scream: "I found this in the trash and now it's art!"
Ypperlig Café offers a whopping two choices of coffee beans, one of which is roasted on-premises, prepared to the customer's preference. For the more discerning clientele, Ypperlig Café also offers the choice of regular sake or a seasonal variety, both produced by Ice Queen Sake. Finally, the scant menu offerings are limited to either fried chicken cartilage or dumplings.
Lars Ando, a retired Star Army technician, began building and maintaining espresso machines last year and saw opportunity knocking when one of his clients, the previous occupant of the current Ypperlig Café location, went belly-up. He bought their equipment at a firesale discount and acquired the location, turning it into Ypperlig Café, which is sure to be the shortest-lived business in the location's history. In an exclusive interview, he had this to say: "Why are you talking to me? I don't own the place, I just started the cooperative that does."
The Ypperlig Café Workers Cooperative manages the Ypperlig Café and Izakaya gives every employee, including its founder, an equal share in the decision making and any profits. This is likely the reason they haven't settled on any kind of branding, though mysteriously this doesn't seem to bother the customers who pack the narrow aisles from whenever they open to whenever they close.
