OR Coffee Lab

OR Coffee Roasters has been sourcing and roasting specialty coffee since the early 2000s, built by Katrien Pauwels and her husband around direct relationships with growers rather than importers. After running bars at several addresses around Ghent over the years, the brand returned to Sint Pietersnieuwstraat in 2025 with a concept it calls a coffee lab, set inside the building that once housed the Backstay hostel bar next to the university district.

Espresso, filter and iced coffee are all built from beans roasted at OR's own facility, and the lab format leans into that connection with tastings of new single origin lots and barista workshops for anyone who wants to learn the craft behind the counter. Breakfast and lunch round out the food side, and bags of the current roast are available to take home alongside the equipment used to brew them.