It's Official. Commonwealth Coffee Bar Is Open for Business

This morning we reported rumors that Commonwealth might be making a move downtown. Now it's official. The coffee bar opened today at Shinola Midtown shop on Canfield.

The bar offers (surprise) pour-overs made with fresh-roasted coffee beans and pastries from the company's flagship location in Birmingham, says co-owner Alex Chisholm.

The hours this weekend are 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. until 5 p.m., but beginning next week the coffee bar will start regular hours (Monday-Friday 7:30 a.m.-7 p.m., Saturday 7:30 a.m.-6 p.m., and Sunday 7:30-5 p.m.).

Chisholm says the bar has been in the works for quite some time and is a permanent move. Commonwealth has taken over a vacant space left by DROUGHT, which recently relocated to Shinola's sister store WILLY'S.

"We're all kind of a big fan of what Shinola is doing in the city and we were looking for a reason to move to Detroit," Chisholm tells Eater. "It just seemed like a really good fit."

Commonwealth's Birmingham location is also in the midst of a big expansion. Chisholm says they're already in the demolition process that will double the café's capacity. The partners expect the expansion will be complete by early December.

"We definitely have more things in the works, but I can't say too much about that right now," Chisholm adds.