Summer Pop-Up: Moment by Mayawell

It’s summer, and any Austinites who haven’t escaped to cooler climes for the season are searching for somewhere to cool down and take it easy. Thanks to locally-based beverage company Mayawell, there’s one more chill destination on the East side to kick it (at least temporarily): Moment By Mayawell.

The pop-up opened its doors in early June at 2609 E. Cesar Chavez and plans to be the happenin’ community hangout for these hot summer months, offering community, cool stuff, and, naturally, a slew of the brand’s beverages plus satisfying sips made with those beverages.

If you’re not familiar with Mayawell, which launched in early 2020, the beverage company is all about serving up that good gut feeling. Yup, this beverage is prebiotic.

Made from the agave plant (a hybrid of two separate agave plants), the non-alcoholic sparkling prebiotic soda is slightly sweet – it only contains 4 grams of added sugar – and full of seriously beneficial active fiber that studies say improves digestion, boosts the immune system, and lowers the risk of obesity and weight gain, all while elevating mood and cognitive function. Plus, one 12-ounce can delivers 20% of the daily recommended value of fiber in a single serving. Not bad for soda.

But Mayawell didn’t just want to offer an easy, delicious, healthy way to improve their customers’ gut health; they wanted to focus on building community in their own hometown. So co-founders Oliver Shuttlesworth and Vicente Reyes sat down and brainstormed how they could be more present and active in Austin, all while boosting their community’s health and wellness.

Shuttlesworth had an idea. “Why don’t we create a place where people can interact with the product at any time of day,” he thought. Invite potential customers in and serve them up something special – think sparkling probiotic matcha in the mornings, ice cream floats featuring local Gati vegan ice cream in the afternoon, and mixed Mayawell cocktails or spritzers in the evening. “At the same time, it can focus as a community outpost.”

It’s a welcome feature for many since these days, “a lot of people are hungry for community,” Shuttlesworth says.

And being a community epicenter there on Ceasar Chavez means a full calendar of events and offerings, including intimate concerts to pilates classes with Castle Hill Fitness, group cycling outings hosted by The Meteor, guided taco tours of the Eastside, agave-themed baking classes with Mindy’s BakeShop, and potting classes with Garden Seventeen.

“We want to be a hub for people to connect and relax and just hang out,” Shuttlesworth says. “Our goal is to have a really nice roster of events throughout the summer.”

But it’s not just events and activities happening in the space that beckon locals; the pop-up is also a gallery of sorts that highlights a wild assortment of locally made foods and goods. Grab-and-go meals and munchies from Lucky Lime, Blenders and Bowls, and Gati are available in the coolers. Garden Seventeen has transformed a solid half of the space into a fantastically green plant shop. Artistically designed tiles from Clay Imports, apothecary-style goods from Sabia Apothecary, Casa Verde Salsa, and works by a rotating selection of artists (organized by ATX Girls), line the shelves.

Outside on the private patio, food and drinks vendors like coffee carts and food trucks will come and go, all while Shuttlesworth and the Mayawell team get creative with new ways to utilize the space this summer when many Austinites are finally venturing back into the world and want nothing more than to gather, chill out, and enjoy a refreshing beverage (that also happens to be pretty damn good for them).

The whole concept fits flawlessly with the brand’s mission to lead a life centered on community and wellness and invites the entire community to rest, recharge, and connect somewhere new this summer. As the brand says, nuestra casa es su casa.

On August 8, 11am-2pm, they’re hosting a Pride Pop-Up benefiting the It Gets Better Project.