Tinker Coffee Custom Tailors Downtown Indianapolis Cafe

At the new Tinker Coffee flagship cafe in downtown Indianapolis. Photo by Nick Joson, courtesy of Tinker Coffee.

Having tweaked and fine-tuned its operations at two airport locations and one food hall kiosk, Indianapolis-born Tinker Coffee has opened a flagship cafe downtown.

The new shop spreads over 1,900 square feet formerly occupied by Starbucks Coffee on the ground level of the 28-story Market Square building. The space was already optimized for retail cafe service, giving the growing Tinker crew more time to dabble in the finer details. 

Photo by Nick Joson, courtesy of Tinker Coffee.

“Our cafe at Market is our first opportunity to have complete ownership over the entire space,” Cafe Manager Libby Baert recently told Daily Coffee News. “Everything as major as the bar layout to the color of the electrical outlets has been thought out with the team at Tinker.”

Tinker collaborated with local firms Bohall Design & Fabrication, Parallel Design Group and Hannigan Building Company to bring about its brand-centric vision for the space.

Photo by Nick Joson, courtesy of Tinker Coffee.

Neutral colors and natural materials allow the the red of Tinker’s brand pop on retail bags and menu boards. White oak slat walls echo the interior design at Tinker’s AMP location, and a mixture of seating includes some group tables, a window counter, outdoor patio table and a few seats at a curved end of the coffee bar.

“We knew we wanted space for people to meet in groups or work solo, and we’ve always wanted bar seating at the counter for special events and as a space for friends and family to hang,” said Baert. “The shape of our bar is one of my favorite new elements that was created. It houses our grab-and-go, P.O.S., espresso line, and bar seating and has such a fun and unique curvature to it.”

Photo by Nick Joson, courtesy of Tinker Coffee.

Tinker’s signature 5 Spice Latte stands tall alongside brewed coffee flights, single-origin espressos and more. An espresso lemonade piloted on a “secret menu” last summer is an official menu item. 

Espresso comes by way of a 2-group Slayer LP espresso machine. Traditional batch brew is made on a Fetco machine while a Ground Control brewer handles single-origin cold brew and a concentrate for iced coffees, as well as some additional drip-style options.

Photo by Nick Joson, courtesy of Tinker Coffee.

All of Tinker’s coffees pass through a Loring S35 roasting machine at the company’s off-site Indianapolis roastery, which has gotten increasingly busy. 

“We also recently expanded our presence into 258 Walmart stores across the Midwest and beyond, which has presented new challenges that our production team has done an awesome job tackling.” Tinker Coffee Co-Founder Stephen Hall told DCN.

Photo by Nick Joson, courtesy of Tinker Coffee.

From the company’s first full kitchen comes a selection of classic breakfast sandwiches and other fresh plates, plus cookies straight from the oven. The recipe for the shop’s Maple Pecan Cookie is inspired by local restaurant legend Chef Greg Hardesty, who died from cancer in 2021. 

“I love that we have his infamous cookies as an homage to him,” said Baert. “We’ve been able to grow not only in our coffee offerings, but also food offerings as well, making everything in house. Ultimately we have full control over the whole space, and have had a lot of fun showcasing who we are through every detail.”

Photo by Nick Joson, courtesy of Tinker Coffee.

Tinker Coffee is located at 360 E. Market St. in Indianapolis. Tell DCN’s editors about your new coffee shop or roastery here.