On September 16 the new coffee bar will replace La Chascona at Oever 18. Only a month ago Noah Melis got the offer of taking over the place and he grabbed the opportunity with both hands. ‘My life is all about fast decisions’, he told me. Discover in avant-premiere Antwerp’s new coffee spot which will focus on the best things in life: friends, music and coffee.
Noah is the drummer of the Belgian band . He needed a new challenge apart from making music and so rose the idea of opening a coffee bar with his father. The place will be a lot like how it used to be at La Chascona’s: the interior décor will still match perfectly with the antique vibe of the Kloosterstraat and even the menu will not change so the regular customers can stick to their favourites. The biggest indication that the place has gotten an update is the beautiful logo Sarah Yu Zeebroek made.
Noah does not believe in the trend of making coffee bars into working spaces and digital hotspots; he just wants friends to meet up while enjoying a no-nonsense coffee. No overly fancy decorations on top, just tasty coffee from a small company called Taeymans Coffee. Me & My Monkey invites its customers to experience life without being constantly connected to the internet. There is Wi-Fi, but keep it quiet.
So, where does the name come from? People who think of the Robbie Williams song are mistaken, because it actually is a reference to the Beatles’ ‘Everybody’s Got Something to Hide Expect Me and My Monkey’. For Noah, that figurative monkey on the back is the addiction to coffee and music.
As you could guess, music is a very important part of Noah’s life. At Me & My Monkey he will offer a selection of rare vinyl from bands he loves. He will play all the records in the coffee bar so the customers can discover new music. There is a lot of psychedelic pop in the collection, next to Belgian bands. If you want to take home a Belgian souvenir, why not buy a record?
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Oever 18
2000 Antwerp
Text and images by Tine