Fashionable vegan brand By Chloe has opened yet another style of cafe, this time inside a new Noho department and with an experimental element for product testing.
Called Thrills By Chloe, the new kiosk serves coffee, tea, desserts, toast, and soup — all vegan, of course — as a food component in Showfields, a four-floor store that brings wellness and beauty internet companies like toothbrush maker Quip or Nuria skincare products to a physical space. All of the vendors have interactive components at the store, located at 11 Bond St., at Lafayette Street, where only the first floor is open so far.
That’s where Thrills lives with a funhouse look, including bright colors and evocative carnival treats like swirly lollipops and peppermint candy floss. Though it’s from By Chloe, the menu is entirely different from the fast-casual chain, with options such as roasted cauliflower soup, edamame toast, hibiscus bubble tea, and hot cocoa-flavored soft serve, all served alongside Devocion coffee that can get a CBD boost.
To go along with the wellness theme, some specialty drinks include touted wellness ingredients like turmeric in the the PSL (turmeric, espresso, pumpkin spice, coconut cream). The menu, in full below, will be used as a testing ground for potential new products to move up to By Chloe.
By Chloe opened in the West Village in 2015, quickly becoming crowded and expanding to 15 locations across NYC, Boston, Los Angeles, and London. Co-founders Chloe Coscarelli and Samantha Wasser had a nasty public split, and Coscarelli is no longer affiliated with the chain. Wasser has since added Sweets By Chloe and now Thrills to the empire.
It’s the latest development in retail dining, a genre that has been rapidly on the rise in NYC. Stores are increasingly adding food components to lure in diners, such as Tiffany’s and Todd Snyder. And it’s also increasingly common for chains to have space for product testing.