The Drunken Bean Coffee & Wine Bar

The Drunken Bean is a friendly neighborhood coffee and wine bar where the locals can get their morning coffee and breakfast and in the evening it transforms into a bar which can host local events / performing artists. The design concept was to create a warm, inviting, cozy environment to support the dual function of this space by using rich browns and textures throughout the space. The layout was kept flexible to host variety of event types.

The choice of the interior finishes and furnishings was to accentuate the custom mural; which was intended to be the main feature of space. The mural was designed by one of the local mural artist – Elloo. She customized the mural to incorporate coffee/ wine as well as her signature donuts with the Chicago skyline as the backdrop.

The concept is for breakfast and lunch to be more counter service to coordinate with the faster pace of a coffee shop vibe. And for dinner to be table service, coordinating with a more intimate feel that utilizes the small space. Essentially, it’s two pretty radically different concepts in the same shop. The wine selections are based on a minimum quantity order to rotate frequently and correlate with the changing plates that are served. During dinner it’s as if we are hosting a dinner party every night at our house and everyone is invited. And since we can’t keep serving the same things, we have to rotate and keep our guests happy.