Thursday, March 28, 2024

Wine and coffee bar hopes to bring new experience to High Street

The new business will open in High Street in spring of 2019. (WYDaily/Alexa Doiron)
The new business will open in High Street in spring of 2019. (WYDaily/Alexa Doiron)

A business is coming to town with the goal of providing a new location for culture, community and fun.

“Williamsburg has a lot of millennials from the age of 25 to 35 and there’s a lack of entertainment for them,” said Sean Walker, co-owner of the business, Tipsy Beans. “Entertainment just isn’t there without having to go to college atmospheres and we want to provide that location.”

Tipsy Beans is a wine and coffee bar that will open in High Street this spring, Walker said. Co-owner Andre McLaughlin said the business will have a modern design and menu with drink and food options sourced from Virginia and North Carolina. There will be items such as mimosas and avocado sandwiches for brunch on the weekends as well as coffee and wine regularly served.

McLaughlin said the idea for the business came over the summer when he was thinking about how Williamsburg needs a place that was relaxing, first-class and one that provides a vibrant atmosphere.

Walker and a third co-owner, Alex Frazier, agreed.

“We want to provide a place for the younger generation where they can have a cool place to take time and enjoy life without having to go to Richmond or Virginia Beach,” Walker said.

Tipsy Beans will provide a relaxing and entertaining environment for guests, said co-owner Sean Walker. (WYDaily/Courtesy Tipsy Beans)
Tipsy Beans will provide a relaxing and entertaining environment for guests, said co-owner Sean Walker. (WYDaily/Courtesy Tipsy Beans)

This is the second business Walker and McLaughlin have opened together.

About five years ago, the pair met while working out at a gym and decided to open their own gym. In 2017, they opened Frame Fitness.

In addition, Fraizer, who is McLaughlin’s cousin, owns the company All-Trade Construction that helped provide a structure and development to the Frame Fitness location when it first opened.

Now, the trio is taking the next step and breaking into an entirely different market.

“There’s risks with every single thing, but with big risk comes big reward,” McLaughlin said. “We see the direction we want for our life and we’re going after it.”

This is a second business for all three co-owners, with McLaughlin also working as the James City County resource officer for Lafayette High School, but they said it’s their sole focus at the moment.

“We want to bring the brunch vibe,” Walker said. “Not like the million pancake houses we already have, but something different. Everyone seems to be doing the same thing, but we all live in this community and we want to give it something unique.”

As young professionals with new families themselves, they said they see the need for a place where people can feel at home while going out with friends.

Part of their goal is to provide a location with a sense of duality for the working Williamsburg local.

While it provides a night time experience for getting drinks with coworkers after a long day, it also will be an environment where people can bring their laptops and work or simply relax with a good drink, Frazier said.

“People pay for the environment,” Walker said. “It’s about the energy and we feel like we are going to bring a different kind of energy. Williamsburg needs something new and we’re going to bring it.”

Alexa Doiron
Alexa Doironhttp://wydaily.com
Alexa Doiron is a multimedia reporter for WYDaily. She graduated from Roanoke College and is currently working on a master’s degree in English at Virginia Commonwealth University. Alexa was born and raised in Williamsburg and enjoys writing stories about local flair. She began her career in journalism at the Warhill High School newspaper and, eight years later, still loves it. After working as a news editor in Blacksburg, Va., Alexa missed Williamsburg and decided to come back home. In her free time, she enjoys reading Jane Austen and playing with her puppy, Poe. Alexa can be reached at alexa@localvoicemedia.com.

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