The Coffee Shop Where Toronto Puts Its Phone Down to Make Clay
Siblings Sarah and Thomas Sawaya built Toronto’s first pottery studio and specialty coffee shop around one simple bet: a room where your hands are busy is a room where your phone stays in your pocket.
August 26, 2026 · By Justin Plosz · Toronto, Ontario · Business · 6 min read read
A Pottery Wheel Where the WiFi Password Used to Go
Most coffee shops compete on WiFi speed and outlet access. TigerBaby Coffee & Clay is doing the opposite. Toronto's first-ever pottery café, which opened its flagship location at 977 College Street on Wednesday, August 19, is built on a small, pointed idea: there are no TV screens on the walls, and the act of shaping clay physically occupies the hands that would otherwise be reaching for a phone.
“To further the detox from everyday stress, the studio has no TV screens, and the act of doing pottery blocks you from using your phone — forcing a disconnect from society,” is how the founders describe the design. It is a wellness pitch dressed up as a coffee shop, and a coffee shop dressed up as a wellness studio, and it is working precisely because it refuses to pick just one.
The business is the work of siblings Sarah and Thomas Sawaya, co-founders who named the whole operation after their childhood cat, TigerBaby. Their motto — community, craft, creativity — is stitched into every design decision in the room, from the hand-moulded ceramic coffee cups to the mirror positioned for exactly the photo you think it's positioned for.
From a Demanding Tech Job to a Studio Full of Clay
Sarah Sawaya's path to opening a pottery café started with burnout. After working a tech job that kept her on a computer all day, she took up pottery as a way to unplug — and then, in her own words, became obsessed. “I took up pottery as a hobby to really relax and unplug, and then it turned into a lot more than that,” she told Now Toronto. “I thought maybe this is something I could open in Toronto, and other people could benefit.”
She brought in her brother Thomas, a barista with eight years of experience, and the two started running pottery pop-ups around the city before demand convinced them to commit to a permanent home. That kind of slow, tested build — pop-up, feedback, flagship — is a more honest founding story than most new hospitality concepts get, and it shows in how specific the finished space feels.
“So far, amazing,” Thomas said of working alongside his sister. “I think the best part of the job is being able to work with my sister every day, and being able to collaborate on the two crafts.” Sarah agreed, joking that the arrangement reminds her of being kids again: “We practically live together now because we're here all day, every day.”
A Room Designed to Be Photographed and Then Put Away
Thomas's background in interior design shows up everywhere: hand-moulded ceramic coffee cups, handmade bathroom tiles, warm accent lighting, and a Korean café-inspired atmosphere built around specialty drinks. It is, by design, an Instagram-worthy room — there is a mirror placed specifically for the photo. But the point of the space is what happens after the photo is taken, when the phone goes back in a pocket and the clay comes out.
That tension is the smartest part of the concept. TigerBaby isn't pretending to reject phone culture; it is using the visual language young customers already respond to, then handing them an activity that phone culture can't touch. “The space is meant to focus on both crafts and kind of inspire people to slow down, be creative, work on something new,” Thomas explained — whether that means trying a new coffee, learning to throw a bowl, or just building a culture of ceramics in a city that hasn't really had one.
The retail side matters too. Customers can buy a curated selection of handmade ceramic pieces made in-house, so the studio's own output becomes part of what keeps the lights on — a small, tidy loop between craft and commerce.
How to Start Your Own Pottery Journey
TigerBaby keeps the on-ramp simple. Classes are bookable online with no experience required: a three-hour taster class for people who just want to try it once, and four-week or eight-week workshops for anyone who wants to actually get good. The studio handles the finishing work — trimming and glazing — so a first-timer can leave with a real, usable object instead of a lopsided souvenir.
The coffee side runs on its own rhythm. Visitors can grab a specialty drink, get some laptop work done at the bar, and head into a class when their slot comes up. Coffee bar seating and retail stay open through all operating hours — Wednesday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Saturday and Sunday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. — even when the studio itself is mid-class.
For a generation that has been told, repeatedly, to find a hobby that isn't a screen, TigerBaby is a rare business that built its entire model around taking that advice seriously.
Key takeaways
- TigerBaby Coffee & Clay is Toronto's first pottery studio and specialty coffee shop, opened August 19, 2026 at 977 College Street.
- It was founded by siblings Sarah and Thomas Sawaya, who tested the concept through pottery pop-ups before opening a flagship location.
- The studio deliberately has no TVs, and pottery-making physically disconnects visitors from their phones.
- Classes include three-hour tasters and four- or eight-week workshops, with no experience required and studio staff handling trimming and glazing.
- The space combines Korean café-inspired specialty coffee with hand-moulded ceramics, retail pottery, and Thomas Sawaya's interior design work.
- Coffee bar seating and retail stay open Wednesday to Sunday, independent of class schedules.
Frequently asked questions
- What is TigerBaby Coffee & Clay?
- TigerBaby Coffee & Clay is Toronto's first combined pottery studio and specialty coffee shop. It was founded by siblings Sarah and Thomas Sawaya and opened its flagship location on August 19, 2026.
- Where is TigerBaby Coffee & Clay located?
- TigerBaby Coffee & Clay is located at 977 College Street in Toronto's Brockton Village neighbourhood.
- Do I need pottery experience to take a class?
- No. TigerBaby's pottery classes are open to all levels, including three-hour taster classes and four- or eight-week workshops for people with no prior experience.
- Who founded TigerBaby Coffee & Clay?
- TigerBaby was founded by siblings Sarah Sawaya, who discovered pottery while unwinding from a demanding tech job, and Thomas Sawaya, a barista with an interior design background.
- Why doesn't TigerBaby have TVs or encourage phone use?
- The studio was designed as a screen-free, phone-down space. The founders say working with clay physically occupies your hands, which naturally disconnects visitors from their phones and everyday stress.
- Can I buy ceramics at TigerBaby without taking a class?
- Yes. TigerBaby sells a curated selection of handmade ceramic pieces, and the coffee bar and retail area stay open during all operating hours.
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