The Block Café

theblockcafe (34)in #lisboa • 7 years ago (edited)

Catching the metro, just a few stops away from the buzzing streets of old town Lisbon, past the vast widths of park Edward the VII on a rather local and calm street of Latino Coelho you should find the door, not much different than the others. Marked with number 63 and hardly noticeable for any other passer-by. You, however, would not be like any other wanderer, in fact, you would most likely be tech-savvy, blockchain enthusiast, digital nomad, world changer, specialty coffee geek or generally curious person caring for the future. If such is the case, you certainly have arrived to the right place.

Having opened its door for the first time over three months ago, it is still shaping what The Block really is. At its legal form it is part a cowork space, part a specialty cafe and part a venue hosting events ranging from high tech workshops to very much community bonding afternoons. But what really drives it is the focus on uniting and most importantly educating people with interest and passion for blockchain related technologies. With an eye on giving its best, The Block pays great deal of attention to the quality of the drinks served. Japanese tea culture as well as third wave coffee are at the spotlight making break a compliment from the pickiest ones.
With all of the above in mind, the people of The Block simply refer to it as ‘work cafe’.
Traditional cafés often tend to disallow people from working there, but encourages on purchasing beverages instead. At The Block this is not the case. If you are about to get some work done, you book your time and beverages come in with the price, on the other hand, if you are on a day off and just feel like doing nothing but having cup of coffee or tea - that’s the only thing your bill will reflect. This is a very much win-win arrangement.

The idea of The Block started off as anything, but a blockchain hub. Founded by Kevin Loaec (M.D. at Chainsmiths) and Marc Zeller (Co-founder at Asseth) as well a bunch of crypto enthusiasts from ecosystem (Consensys; Variabl.io). What The Block was first thought of being, was more of a third wave cafe that its founders could be working from. Ideation, location scouting and brainstorming on the concept led to multiple destinations, however none of them seemed to have fit the profile. Few months in and the location was found, but the concept had evolved from simply a cafe to a work cafe to the blockchain meetups cafe.
Once the vision was sorted out and finally in place it was time to get the actual work started. Louise Decruck, a good friend of Marc has taken on the responsibility of designing The Block. Not only did she the spectacular job of turning an unused dwelling into a cosy workspace with room capable of hosting 30 people but also suggested well the name for the place. Few months into sleepless construction work and the doors opened right in the middle of the buzzing Web Summit afterparties.

What is The Block up to now? It is definitely gaining the momentum and exposure for what it is meant to be. During the day there are people fully concentrated on projects, discussions or just daily matters. Once night approaches, coworking stops and The Block turns into event space. With that said, the very best ones from companies such as Ethereum Foundation (Ewasm team), IPFS, Consensys, Infura just to name a few that have already been working or running conferences/workshops at The Block. A genuine ecosystem is building up, with people truly passionate for what they are doing and eagerly interested sharing their knowledge with those still catching up. People choose return more often which makes community grow by building real friendships making this place more than just a place to work from. Specialty coffee, high-end blockchain meetups, workshops, is there anything else to be on a surprise list? Well, yes. By being crypto focused, it is thus far the only cowork space in the country accepting crypto currencies as means of payment. Yet, very soon The Block will also be home for the very first official crypto broker in Portugal.
It is by far the best thing to be welcomed by people who are experts in their field and having opportunity working in an environment that’s at the forefront of the technology rally. The Block is truly building up the community of like minded people, and the place is slowly becoming an inspiration and destination for many of disruptive technologies nomads!