Kribi Co ee looks to grow hours, add alcohol, host evening events

Coffee shop aims to achieve relaxed, lounge -like atmosphere

By IGOR STUDENKOV Staff Reporter

Kribi Cof fee’s Forest Park location, 7324 Madison St., is looking to become more of a specialty cocktail lounge, with music, events and bar service – but only in the evenings.

Abbey Brumfiel, the roastery’s director of operations, said they wanted to be able to take advantage of the fully renovated lounge and be more of a community gathering place. The downstairs Ubuntu Lounge already has a bar – they just need to get a liquor license to be able to alcohol. Kribi plans to serve cocktails the evening, and customers will able to order coffees and teas Kribi during the day.

Brumfiel said the changes will happen “no later than June,” depending on soon they receive a liquor license ally, she said, they want to start ev hours by mid-April. Brumfiel said are aiming for a relaxed lounge vibe while they do plan to host perfor mances they aren’t looking for anything loud

Disruptive

Previously known as Counter Coffee, the Forest Park coffee shop was remade as Kribi Cof fee Air Roasters to reco gnize Jacques Shalo’s Cameroonian heritage. It opened a second location in Oak Park, at 1033 South Blvd., in October 2022.

Brumfiel reflected that the issue with the downstairs basement space has always been that customers, even those who have been inside, don’t necessarily realize it’s even there. It didn’t help that, in November 2021, the lounge flooded, and Kribi spent the next eight months repairing it.

Kribi was closed to indoor dining for much of the first year of the pandemic. Brumfiel said the customers were the cof- in a “singing open mic” and perfor mances by local acts.

“We had some inquiries from artists who want to perfor m live music,” Brumfiel said. “Honestly, any way we can showcase our awesome community, we would do it.”

Still, she said they don’t want to have “loud music where you can’t hear yourself talk.”

“Our goal is to have a much more relaxed, chill vibe,” Brumfiel said. “[It] will just be open to everybody to have a quiet drink with their friends.”

The coffee shop is currently open from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. Brumfiel said they haven’t decided how late Kribi would stay open, but she noted that under Forest Park li-