Blue Bottle coffee has just signed a lease for a 15,800 square-foot space at 279 McKibbin Street in Bushwick, where it will open its first joint operation with fellow Californian, San Francisco's acclaimed Tartine Bakery. The two companies merged back in April, with promises to bring outposts of Tartine to New York and LA, both cities where Blue Bottle already has a strong presence. Shortly after, the Tartine team hinted that it was looking to open in Brooklyn first, but gave no indication of where.
This new place will have a cafe/bakery, but also a coffee roasting warehouse, and a baking facility that will presumably allow Tartine to supply other Blue Bottle outposts, or perhaps even wholesale. It's also just two blocks from Roberta's, which means this area is about to become Brooklyn's number one employer of hip food people, not to mention an epicenter of really good bread.
Estimates are vague, but a representative for Thor Retail Advisors, which represented Blue Bottle in the deal, says the companies are aiming to have this space up and running by winter. They don't anticipate opening a Manhattan outpost until 2017.