(Photo: Jonsar Studios)
New York City is saturated with coffee places, so how does one separate themselves from the pack? Well, one way is to invent your own brewing element. Extraction Lab has done just that with an original craft brewer called Steampunk. The device, which looks like a cross between a French press and a draft beer tap, is so ultra modern it’s operated by an iPad app and designed to combine all the elements of drip, French press, and espresso brewing. The whole process is like watching a coffee dance– I recommend checking the whole mesmerizing thing out here.
Up till now, Brooklynites had to go to, say, Kaffe1668 in Tribeca to see the Steampunk in action, but now Industry City in Sunset Park is serving as the New York headquarters of Alpha Dominche, the company that invented the device. Their office is tucked away in the back of a cafe, so you can drink expertly brewed coffee– ranging in price from $3 to a jaw-dropping $18 per cup– on their front doorstep while the company designs new technology in the back.
The so-called Extraction Lab is modern and industrial with hardwood floors, warm lighting, iron window panes and an expansive ceiling. It’s less a cafe for lounging and more a place where serious connoisseurs can taste and learn about coffee and tea like you might a fine wine. Over the next few months Extraction Lab even hopes to offer formal classes. In the meantime, expect detailed information on different kinds of roasts and extreme care in brewing technique.
When it opens Friday, Extraction Lab will feature their own in-house roasting element for beans supplied by Ninety-Plus, but they will also rotate through dozens of other roasters from around the world. Check out roasting partners like Jacobsen og Svart of Norway or The Barn of Germany and others here.
Extraction Lab, 51 35th St. Industry City Building 5, Sunset Park.