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The shop has gone through lots of changes over the years but our 'why' has always remained central to everything we do—to be a home away from home that celebrates heritage and stands in solidarity with the causes we believe in, and to be a community hub for local creatives, makers and artists. Along the way, we have also learned how to be a cafe (haha)! We began roasting our own coffee in 2022 with our partners over at Shared Roasting and have since introduced several single origin coffees to our portfolio. We try to keep it interesting and play with new flavors to create fun seasonal specials. Great coffee doesn't always have to be taken so seriously!
We introduced our wine program in 2023 to supplement all the late night events we do, and my own personal interest in natural and biodynamic wines.
My grandfather moved to New York City in the early 80s, and after spending over a decade working in hospitality, opened up his own restaurant in the 90s. My mom was pregnant with my brother at the time of opening, while still working full time as a pharmacy tech, and my dad spent every single day in the restaurant with my ye ye (grandfather).
As immigrants, the dream for my parents was for my life to be easier, more fruitful and less stressful than theirs. So when I told them that I wanted to leave my corporate job in fashion and open a cafe with a friend, there was obvious concern. But after a few months of talking about it nonstop and creating real plans for what would be Land to Sea, they came around and realized that I (selfishly) wanted to do and create meaningful work for myself—like father, like daughter.
There is a never ending stream of advice (usually unsolicited) from them, but what I hear the most is to never stop thinking—what's next? What else can we do at the shop? How can we be better?
It's New York, so naturally people are competitive. But, at the same time, you will never find a kinder, more generous, hardworking bunch. Opening and running a business in NYC is incredibly challenging and I think regardless of what kind of business you run here, we all have similar issues. I am grateful to be able to lean on the support of my small-business community for advice, friendship and the occasional emergency run for supplies. I'm inspired by them constantly!
When we opened the shop we always had the intention of being a real event space, and extending past regular run-of-the-mill café hours. Our concept has been fluid from day one, and we have intentionally designed and built the shop to be flexible. It's exhausting to be present for café hours and have to re-energize yourself to be present for event hours, both physically and mentally. Many events are quite ambitious (we just hosted a WEEKLY concert series from behind the bar), but I think it's always worth it to push the envelope and extend past what the bounds of a café can be. We're always thinking and dreaming of what our next big event or project will be.
My team inspires me every single day with new ideas for the shop, for drink ideas, for events, for team bonding. My amazing coworkers and team leaders, Maaike & Nguyen, and my Events & Partnerships lead, Jen Louie, who joined our team after exhibiting her own work at the shop. I've learned so much from them and my work life simply wouldn't be as enjoyable without them. Our community partners who bring forward ideas as it relates to activism, workshops, music, etc.
There are some amazing small businesses that are doing great work in the activism and art space that I look up to: Yafa Coffee, Yu & Me Books, Cafe Colmado, Far Near, the Asian American Arts Alliance to name a few.