Sydney roaster Single O is expanding its presence in Japan with the launch of a new café in East Tokyo on 28 October.
To suit Japan’s largely filter coffee market, the new Single O Hamacho café, located in Hamacho, East Tokyo, will feature self-serve Freepour Coffee on Tap, along with a new espresso program and Aussie-Japanese inspired menu.
Coffees will be available across six taps, laid out like beers on tap with the name, variety and process listed. Single O Hamacho customers can swerve in from the sidewalk, place their cup under their chosen tap and fill up.
Featured tap coffees will include Jagwan Estate AA Kenya Washed, SL28/Ruiru 11/Batian; Nuevo Progresso’s Washed SL09 from the Peru Cup of Excellence, exclusive Colombian microlots, and an international guest roaster.
“Single O has always championed transparency to origin and producers for Australian drinkers. Recently we had the tap bar created for our long-standing Surry Hills Sydney café,” says Single O’s General Manager Mike Brabant.
“We knew when we opened a café in Tokyo, to accompany our roastery there, the Freepour Coffee On Tap would be a big feature. Where else in the world do you find such an appreciation for high quality craft and convenience? Japan’s the place.”
Yu Yamamoto, a roaster, Q Grader, and Head of Single O Japan, will lead the new venue.
Single O Hamacho will serve the roaster’s signature blend Reservoir for all milk-based coffees. Rotating single origins are specially selected for espresso and long blacks, served via a La Marzocco PB.
This isn’t Single O’s first induction to Japan’s coffee community. A roastery in Ryogoku has been supplying Japanese cafés and coffee bars for the past five years, including The Guts Coffee, Dandelion Chocolate and Hey.
Single O Japan even roasted for the Australian Olympic Team at this year’s Tokyo Olympics, and ran a pop-up coffee bar in the Olympic Village.
Yu Sasaki has designed Hamacho’s new menu, featuring Aussie Jaffles, seasonal spins on the nostalgic Aussie sandwich; Pies That Fly with chunky beef, spiced chickpea and seasonal veg; and of course, Single O’s signature breakfast dish, Banana Bread with espresso butter.
Cut-off from managing this project in-person due to travel restrictions, Single O rallied against the odds of building the café over Zoom, and made sure to inject its hallmarks of sustainability and creativity every step of the way.
Luchetti Krelle, the same designers who created Single O’s Surry Hills interior, are responsible for the new café fit-out. The front counter housing the Freepour Coffee On Tap features curves and corten in a nod to Hamacho’s history as a craft district. The sustainable fibreboard espresso bar is fashioned from upcycled clothing by a local company with a mission to reduce waste.
Japanese artist Washio Tomoyuki created the café’s detailed monochrome mural, penned in texta pen in just a few days. Sydney’s Ren Fernando created the ‘Cloud’ ceiling artwork using repurposed end-of-line paper and coloured with coffee, and tables are made from recycled plastic.
The fitout alludes to Single O’s waste and climate-change programs, which have culminated since their establishment, into their wake-up-call campaign, No Death To Coffee.
Location: 3-16-7 Nihonbashi Hamacho Chuo Tokyo.
Opening hours: Mon – Fri 7:30AM – 7:00PM, Sat – Sun 08:00AM – 7:00PM
