LAOBRA
is inspired by the Latin American adage "manos a la obra" — hands at work, hands at play.
53 Scott Ave, BKNY 11237
We're a hospitality brand reimagined for artists and the creative process. Our mission is to build premium tools and thoughtfully curated spaces that nurture creativity.
Your support for everything we do is what allows us to pursue what we love and what is right. For us, that means prioritizing the well-being of our planet, supporting our team, and creating exceptional experiences that we’re proud to share with you through art, hospitality, and coffee.
All contributing uniquely and symbiotically to the artist’s pursuit of passion. We believe when one finds their ideal balance between rest, work, and play, their passion flourishes — and with it, their capacity to inspire the world.
Our Founders
Michel & Alexandra Monegro
Photo by Chris Talamo
Many of you know us personally but for those who don't yet, allow us to explain why we started on this journey.
Firstly, We believe most things we do should start with a clearly defined reason — our Why. Ours for shaping LAOBRA wasn’t initially an entrepreneurial pursuit, it was born out of falling out of love with our day-to-day work in fashion.
By superficial measures we should’ve been happy. We earned well, worked with great clients, and enjoyed the company of our colleagues. As grateful as we remain for that era of our careers, we just weren't feeling it anymore. We felt our passion evaporating with time, and knew we needed to find a way to rekindle the fire for creating we once held in our hearts.
We felt we needed space where we could experiment with complete freedom, tinker with all things we found interest in. Some days it could be making photos, others it could be beverage fermentation or roasting coffee, even furniture making and fabric dying. However, we ended up feeling the most passion for shaping the space that would welcome all of that — in shaping a space that would encourage experimentation. A space that would serve as a conduit between us and that giddy feeling of excitement brought on by child-like play.
That space became LAOBRA.
Our spaces call out to other creators who feel disillusioned, those who want to get back to doing what makes their heart sing. Beyond our unique design practice, our goal for LAOBRA is for it to become an ecosystem of spaces and resources. Ones that we can all use for rest, work, and play with a sensitivity for our collective well-being and planet.
The journey here has been enlightening and challenging, fulfilling and frustrating, heart warming and transformative. In the process of building LAOBRA to where it is now, we've grown and we've learned in ways we never imagined.
Someone we admire once told us to “think big, limitless, without boundary” when thinking of our contributions to the world around us and those in it. We have faith our path will continue to push us everyday toward bigger ideas so long as we remain open and in-process. We believe good things deserve to happen, and rooted in this belief we will grow.
Our Studio and the Café are the first and second building blocks that make up LAOBRA. These will grow stronger, and more are planned to grow in time.
All existing symbiotically to create opportunity with a definitive singular purpose, empowering you.
—
warmly,
Michel & Alex 🌷
Our Founders
Michel & Alexandra Monegro
Some of you may know us personally but many may not, so allow me to explain why we started on this journey.
Firstly, We believe most things we do should start with a clearly defined reason, our Why. Ours for shaping LAOBRA wasn’t originally an entrepreneurial pursuit, it was born out of falling out of love with our day-to-day work in fashion.
By superficial measures we should’ve been happy. We earned well, worked with great clients, and enjoyed the company of our colleagues. As grateful as we remain for that era of our careers, we just weren't feeling it anymore.
What we say and (more importantly) what we do to support our words matter to us. To see the change we want in the world, we must first embody and shape that change within us. Only from there can it ripple outward and transform the world around us.
Community
is the heart, and knocking gates of their hinges(!) is how we grow larger and stronger.
We know of the many gate keepers there are in the commercial art space. Behavior for the creators who feel their success must equal the dimming of others. We don’t believe in a world that operates in that way. We believe in nurturing a world that believes success is directly correlated with the opportunity and joy we bring to our community.
Environment
Creating clean.
Good for the planet, good for you.
With every project regardless of scale, we inevitably create some form of waste that impacts the planet. We believe in limiting that waste as much as we possibly can. Yet, while conservation is an important first step in fighting climate change, we all need to do more to reduce greenhouse gas in the atmosphere.
For that reason, we purchase Carbon Offsets via Terrapass. By doing this we’re supporting emissions reductions projects in communities throughout North America and the world. This helps us collectively create responsibly and continue our effort to be carbon neutral.
By stacking these and many other small shifts in our habits, we believe we can create great change.
We source coffee exclusively from Latin America and the Caribbean. This is a region we know deeply and return to deliberately. This is where our roots come from.
Every lot we carry is chosen to fit one of three moments in the day of person bringing their ideas to the world:
Rest
Decaf coffees. Smooth and soothing — designed to ease the mind and invite reflection.
Work
Balanced medium roast coffees with traditional flavors. Bold and layered — designed to deter the mind and build momentum.
Play
Expressive light roast coffees. Adventurous and a often surprising — designed to awaken the senses and inspire.
That's not a marketing framework, it's how we actually buy our green coffee. If a coffee doesn't clearly belong to one of those moments, it doesn't make the menu.
We work with importers who share our commitment to producer transparency and fair pricing, and we buy seasonally — only within peak harvest windows, so what arrives at your door is always at its best. We cup constantly, purchase carefully, and keep our menu focused by design.
What we say and (more importantly) what we do to support our words matter to us. To see the change we want in the world, we must first embody and shape that change within us. Only from there can it ripple outward and transform the world around us.
Community
is the heart, and knocking gates of their hinges(!) is how we grow larger and stronger.
We know of the many gate keepers there are in the commercial art space. Behavior for the creators who feel their success must equal the dimming of others. We don’t believe in a world that operates in that way. We believe in nurturing a world that believes success is directly correlated with the opportunity and joy we bring to our community.
Environment
Creating clean.
Good for the planet, good for you.
With every project regardless of scale, we inevitably create some form of waste that impacts the planet. We believe in limiting that waste as much as we possibly can. Yet, while conservation is an important first step in fighting climate change, we all need to do more to reduce greenhouse gas in the atmosphere.
For that reason, we purchase Carbon Offsets via Terrapass. By doing this we’re supporting emissions reductions projects in communities throughout North America and the world. This helps us collectively create responsibly and continue our effort to be carbon neutral.
By stacking these and many other small shifts in our habits, we believe we can create great change.
We source coffee exclusively from Latin America and the Caribbean. This is a region we know deeply and return to deliberately. This is where our roots come from.
Every lot we carry is chosen to fit one of three moments in the day of person bringing their ideas to the world:
Rest
Decaf coffees. Smooth and soothing — designed to ease the mind and invite reflection.
Work
Balanced medium roast coffees with traditional flavors. Bold and layered — designed to deter the mind and build momentum.
Play
Expressive light roast coffees. Adventurous and a often surprising — designed to awaken the senses and inspire.
That's not a marketing framework, it's how we actually buy our green coffee. If a coffee doesn't clearly belong to one of those moments, it doesn't make the menu.
We work with importers who share our commitment to producer transparency and fair pricing, and we buy seasonally — only within peak harvest windows, so what arrives at your door is always at its best. We cup constantly, purchase carefully, and keep our menu focused by design.
Scroll to view spaces we've crafted for you 🌷
Café
LAOBRA / café.
Communal space designed to support the thoughtful exploration of great ideas and friendships.
This project's cocoon phase took the shape as a private co-working café from 2023 - 2025.
Now whats emerged out of that cocoon is an all-day café that we're so proud to have nurtured to this point — alongside all of those wonderful people who visited during the early years in Bushwick. The café will now serve specialty coffee and pastries by day, natural wine and light bite by night.
This is where our journey led us, but it all started with our Studio way back in October of 2022.
Studio
LAOBRA / studio.
Play space designed to support the boundless expression of great ideas.
Take a look below to dive deeper into our history.
Our History
This is a chronological recalling of how we came to exist, and where we’ve grown to with the love and support of our team and community. It’s takes you behind the scenes, filled with never-before-seen photos of the transformation—from an empty shell into a space that now feels like home. Not just for us, but for everyone who walks through the door.
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Fig.1
Original interior
Fig.2
View from outside
October 2022
Where It Began
Written from the perspective of our founder, Michel.
LAOBRA didn’t start as a business plan. It began as a personal reckoning: What would it feel like to fall in love with creating again?
I had been working in commercial photography as a Digital Technician—by most measures, I was doing well. But over time, I felt something slipping away. My passion dulled. The joy I once found in creative work was replaced by routine. And so, I gave myself permission to try again—to create a space not just for work, but for wonder.
In October, I got the keys to a raw space in Bushwick. No team. No name. Just a vision and the will to build something meaningful. The construction was slow—measuring twice, cutting once, borrowing tools from friends, redrawing plans late into the night. Progress came inch by inch, but every step forward brought the dream into sharper focus.
Fig.1
Original interior
Fig.2
View from outside
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Fig.3
Sketches of the space
Fig.4
Construction work
Fig.5
Site visit
Fig.6
Construction of the Kitchen area
Fig.7
Kitchen fit out
October 2022 – February 2023
The Name
I was already building, but I didn’t have a name. And that felt right. I trusted that if I kept doing the work with care and intuition, the right name would find us.
It did.
Sometime in December, on a solo retreat upstate, the word LAOBRA surfaced. It felt immediate and true. Our name comes from the Latin American phrase “manos a la obra”—a phrase my grandma would yell at me throughout my childhood when I was moving too slow to do the chores she asked me to do—it’s a call to action meaning “hands at/to work” and "hands at/to play,” but deeper than that: it’s an invitation to create with care, with intention, with heart.
Because LAOBRA isn’t just about output. It’s about process. About reclaiming joy, reimagining work, and designing spaces that make space—for experimentation, for curiosity, for play. It’s a home for creators who’ve also lost the spark, and a reminder that the process is the point.
Fig.3
Sketches of the space
Fig.4
Construction work
Fig.5
Site visit
Fig.6
Construction of the Kitchen area
Fig.7
Kitchen fit out
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Fig.8
Finished interior
Fig.9
Moments from the opening party
Fig.10
Opening day
May 2023
Opening Day
At this point, a team had started to form around LAOBRA. It was Alex, Drew, and myself.
We opened our doors quietly—but not alone.
A few close friends came by that first weekend. They saw the paint still drying, the scent of fresh coffee drifting through the air. It wasn’t polished. But it was ours. And that made it magic.
There was no big campaign. No press release. Just genuine conversations, a few shared toasts, and the quiet thrill of watching something imagined come alive.
Word spread not because we shouted, but because something about LAOBRA felt different. Designed with intention, it welcomed creatives, neighbors, and collaborators alike. Our space offered calm without pretense, inspiration without pressure. A place to return to yourself.
And this is still just the beginning. We believe good things deserve to happen. Rooted in that belief, we grow—together.
Fig.8
Finished interior
Fig.9
Moments from the opening party
Fig.10
Opening day
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Fig.11
Studio space
Fig.12
Meditation event space
Fig.13
Cafe Space
2024 & Onward
Growth With Purpose
What began as a solo buildout became something bigger. LAOBRA’s first studio was followed by our café, both designed to honor a simple philosophy: we thrive when we’re given the right space to rest, work, and play.
Even now with a team of 11 of us — Alex, Helena, Anna, Arjay, Evie, Julio, Kyle, Parker, Paul, Lucas, and myself—we’re still small and still growing. We’re building deliberately—with soul, with purpose, with respect for our planet and each other. The journey has been fulfilling, heart-opening, and humbling. But it’s also been clarifying.
Someone once told me:
“THINK BIG, LIMITLESS, WITHOUT BOUNDARY.”
That’s become our north star.
There’s more to come. More blocks to build. But whatever shape LAOBRA takes, its purpose remains clear: to empower creators—and to make space for what’s possible.
Fig.11
Studio space
Fig.12
Meditation event space
Fig.13
Cafe Space