CHICAGO, U.S. – The British may be known for their love of tea, but it looks like a new shop in Lakeview is getting ready to show folks in the United States what they can do with coffee.
Window signs are up at 800 W. Diversey Pkwy. touting the coming arrival of Department of Coffee and Social Affairs, a coffeehouse chain that opened its first location in London in late 2010. The Diversey and Halsted location will be its first foray outside of the United Kingdom.
Since then, the chain has grown to 12 locations throughout greater London, including the original location on Leather Lane Market.
According to its website, the company specializes in single-origin coffee, which it sources itself, and christens with evocative names like A Hoodlum Divine for its Colombian beans and Smoking Gun Vol. II for a Guatemalan espresso.
It also offers a barista training program to assist in the development of coffee-making skills of its employees.
The coffee shop is taking over a former medical office space.
Efforts to reach company reps were unsuccessful so far. Chicago seems to be popular destination for foreign coffee chains, as New Zealand chain Mojo recently opened its first U.S. location downtown.
Chris LaMorte
