“I’m very, very, truly excited about opening our space downtown because it’s been a long haul with this project,” Strange Matter co-founder Elaine Barr said.

Barr said with the construction beginning in December 2021, the process entailed a huge redesign.

The expansion of the coffee shop’s downtown location required reconstruction of two aging buildings in poor condition, which did not come without challenges, Barr said. In the demolition process, the construction team discovered that the original floors were rotting and needed to be replaced.

“With old buildings you get the coolest aesthetic,” Barr said. “We have original brick walls and they are amazing. We had no idea those were there. That was definitely a benefit, but we hadn’t anticipated replacing the entire floor.”

Gianna Taracks, venue manager for Strange Matter’s Eastside location, said she thinks customers will appreciate the cafe space in the new location, which incorporates murals by Lansing artist Sara Pulver.

“It’s such a bigger space and the atmosphere is super cool,” Taracks said. “We’re going to be able to make the original downtown location into something else.”

Lansing resident and Strange Matter regular Chelsea Dowler said she is thankful for the welcoming space the coffee company offers. 

“I come to Strange Matter multiple times a week,” Dowler said. “It’s kind of my office. I do occasionally go downtown for work and so now I can get coffee down there instead of having to stop here first.”

In addition to an expanded cafe space, the kitchen in the downtown location is large enough for Strange Matter and the Lansing bagel food truck, Bangos, to share.

Barr said the idea behind the partnership emerged in spring of this year. 

“With our downtown expansion, we had originally planned on doing small plates of food on our own," Barr said. "The deeper we got into that process, the more it seemed to make sense on a number of fronts to partner with somebody who was established.” 

The partnership with Bangos allows both businesses to reach more customers and gives the coffee shop the ability to serve fresh, hot food, which is an ideal situation for food service, Barr said.

“We are pretty similarly minded in terms of our commitment to quality ingredients, the way we like to serve people and the way we treat our staff,” Barr said. “It just seemed to make sense.”

The downtown location kitchen houses Strange Matter’s bakery, which previously operated in the Eastside location. The coffee shop has night and morning bakers that create all of the baked goods, Taracks said. The night bakers bake the pastries, while the morning bakers frost and decorate them, as well as prepare for the next night shift.

Taracks said the bigger space, complete with a walk-in fridge, will allow Strange Matter to mass produce their products. 

A larger kitchen space also gives the coffee company opportunities to experiment with new menu items, Barr said.

“In the very near term, we’re looking at expanding our bakery offerings, especially at the Union, and increasing the speed of service across our locations,” Barr said. 

Barr said this expansion will also offer more opportunities for catering across the area. 

Eventually, the goal is also to be able to wholesale their house-roasted coffee beans across the country, Barr said.

Strange Matter coffee beans are currently available for purchase on the company’s website, as well as at Campbell’s Market Basket in East Lansing and the Capital City Market in Lansing.

“We have a wonderful group of folks who come into our shops regularly and the only thing that we can ask for is the continued support especially as we’re trying new things,” Barr said. “We always welcome feedback.”