Uel Zing coffee lab is what would happen if an avant-garde winery and an underground urban art gallery had a lovechild. Thankfully it did happen and it’s actually a coffee shop in Bloomington.
Photo by Sonia Chuang
This eclectic coffee house radiates the entrepreneurial spirit of owner Samuel Sveen who successfully transitioned Uel Zing from a coffee cart to a full-flung shop complete with bright yellow floors, hand-built pine tables, a cozy fireplace and a ping pong table.
Photo by Sonia Chuang
If you were doubting its status as a hipster watering-hole, look no further than its name. “UEL” as in “SamUEL” + “ZING” as in the super hype feeling you get from drinking rad coffee.
Photo by Sonia Chuang
So what about the coffee? This place is for the coffee purist because it’s all about the rich flavor itself (rather than the added sugar and milk). Uel Zing specializes in cold brew, which has five times the regular ratio of coffee to water and steeps for 24 hours. The result? A stronger, smoother and more chocolaty iced coffee. That’d be a yes to that.
Photo by Sonia Chuang
Hot coffee is a thing though, too. It’s served from the pour-over bar making it equally delicious.
Photo by Sonia Chuang
All the beans are locally roasted by the Quarrymen Coffee Roasting Company. Which is really just a win for local business and win for consumers who will be in love with the official ZING blend of blueberry-sweet Ethiopian, chocolaty Nicaraguan and smoky Sumatran beans.
Photo by Sonia Chuang
UEL also offers lots of chill ways to get involved with the shop.
Photo by Sonia Chuang
Every Monday is Zing Pong and everyone is welcome and the last Sunday of every month is “coffee lab”. Like winetasting but with coffee, these “labs” are open to the public and feature teaching methods, brewing tips and grinding experiments. Ya know…coffee grinding.
Photo by Sonia Chuang
So go get yours and play a little pong. Uel Zing coffee lab is open for business.
Photo by Sonia Chuang
Still thirsty?