Popular coffee shop Ebrik Coffee Room has closed its downtown Atlanta location after six years.
The closure was due to financial hardships brought on by the coronavirus pandemic, Eater Atlanta first reported.
A video on the shop's website also references COVID-19 as the reason for the closure.
Ebrik, located on the Georgia State University campus at 22 Park Place SE, was open for six years.
“It was a heartbreaker,” co-owner Abbas Barzegar told the AJC. “The landlord were fairly generous in giving us an easy exit. There was just a trajectory of uncertainty in that space,” particularly after the GSU campus closed in March.
Barzegar, who taught at GSU for six years before leaving to open Ebrik, said the closure was a perfect opportunity for him and co-owner Basel Nassri to pivot into expanding their roasting operation and selling their product online.
After the downtown location closed, Barzegar was looking for a space to put Ebrik’s roaster “that wouldn’t be in storage. We wanted to keep the brand alive and still have a presence downtown.”
Enter the Koncept House, a refurbished warehouse in Castleberry Hill owned by Anthony Gee that will eventually include several concepts.
Ebrik’s new downtown home will house its roaster and allow it to ramp up its retail operation, with the hope of eventually serving as a “tasting room”.
“We can grow together into the space,” Barzegar said.
The future of Ebrik’s Decatur location, which also closed in March, is unclear, though Barzegar said “it’s not looking good.” He’s much more confident about Ebrik’s spot inside Emory University’s Michael C. Carlos Museum, which he said will likely reopen when the museum does.
Ebrik is selling two coffees for now -- Don’t Sleep On Ebrik and Bella Ciao: The Solidarity Blend, of which 30% of sales go to an Atlanta non-profit of the customer’s choice. Barzegar said donating part of its proceeds is in keeping with the coffee shop’s mission of “community, comfort and culture.”
Also to that end, Ebrik is set to move its cultural component online, hosting webinars, open mics and DJ nights in the future. This week, Ebrik hosted a discussion with activist Maytha Alhassen, who discussed using coffee as a way to support communities.
Within the next few weeks, Ebrik will likely be roasting five or six different coffee blends, with the goal of eventually adding wholesale sales to its retail operation.
Ebrik’s downtown location is the latest food and beverage concept casualty of the economic impact of coronavirus. Other recent closures include The Canteen and Simon’s in Midtown and Big Ketch in Roswell.
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