About the Bowling Green film
Filmed mainly in Bowling Green Park and Bowling Green subway station in Lower Manhattan, this short film connects Bowling Green coffee with its New York City namesake. The park and station form the heart of the film, introducing Oval’s Women-Grown light roast through the people, music, and everyday movement of these places.
Women-Grown coffee
Women-Grown identifies sourcing connected to farms, producers, or coffee communities where women play meaningful roles in cultivation, processing, ownership, quality, or leadership. Learn more in Oval’s Women-Grown Coffee guide.
A true light roast
Bowling Green is roasted in New York City for clarity, sweetness, clean structure, and an approachable everyday cup in whole bean or single-serve pour-over form. Explore the Bowling Green collection.
Behind the NYC launch films
A coffee ritual moving through Lower Manhattan
The launch-film shoot took place on April 7, 2025. Its starting point was simple: show the experience of brewing Oval’s single-serve pour-over coffee through Christopher Alspach’s view of New York City. The production brief called for an artsy, museum-inspired approach—clean compositions, close attention to hands and coffee, and oval shapes discovered in the city around us.
Inside Culture Founders Barber Shop at 11 Broadway, the team filmed the intimate steps of preparation: opening the pouch, unfolding the filter over a cup, and pouring water through the grounds. Beyond the shop, the wider shoot moved into Lower Manhattan’s streets, parks, waterfront, and subway setting. The everyday coffee ritual became a way to look more closely at the city.
Bowling Green Park & station
Bowling Green Park and Bowling Green subway station are the primary filming locations for this Bowling Green film. The production brief uses the station, its sign, and the movement of trains as recurring visual anchors. The video poster shows Dr. Jonathan Saraga playing trumpet on a station bench during the shoot.
The Battery & the waterfront
The wider shoot explored The Battery and its waterfront setting, with views toward the Hudson River and New York Harbor, the Statue of Liberty, and Ellis Island. The brief also draws on the SeaGlass Carousel’s curves and color as part of the series’ visual language.
Wall Street & South Street
The wider filming day included Wall Street, South Street, and the area around the South Street Seaport and South Street Seaport Museum. These locations place the coffee story within Lower Manhattan’s working streets, cultural landmarks, and waterfront history.
These notes describe the shared filming day and creative context behind the launch-film series. Individual edits feature different selections from that footage.
Scenes to look for
Bowling Green Park and station at the heart of the film
The film was shot mainly in Bowling Green Park and Bowling Green subway station. These settings anchor its connection to the coffee’s name. Additional scenes at The Battery, including the SeaGlass Carousel and waterfront trumpet performance, extend that local story.
Music on the station bench
Inside Bowling Green subway station, Dr. Jonathan Saraga plays trumpet with Andrew Itzkowitz’s children seated beside him. The bench becomes a small shared stage within the everyday movement of the station.
The SeaGlass Carousel
At The Battery’s ocean-themed SeaGlass Carousel, the children and Dr. Saraga appear among the carousel’s sea-life forms. Its curves, color, and gentle motion echo the oval shapes that informed the shoot’s visual concept.
Trumpet at The Battery
Dr. Saraga also plays trumpet outdoors at The Battery, looking toward the Statue of Liberty, with the Canyon of Heroes behind him. The performance connects the film’s music with Lower Manhattan’s streets and harbor setting.
The people in the film
A city story with a family connection
The children featured in the Bowling Green film are the children of Oval Coffee Roasters Co-Founder Andrew Itzkowitz. They appear on the ocean-themed SeaGlass Carousel at The Battery and on a bench inside Bowling Green subway station, sitting beside Dr. Jonathan Saraga as he plays trumpet. These moments bring a personal, family connection to the film’s New York City setting.
Alongside Christopher Alspach’s coffee-making scenes and Dr. Jonathan Saraga’s original music, these family moments connect the product with the people behind Oval. Learn more about the founders and their coffee work.
Original music
The sound of the films: Dr. Jonathan Saraga
Dr. Jonathan Saraga composed an original score for each of Oval’s launch videos. His trumpet performance was also part of the filming day, connecting the music with the city’s movement and the quiet attention of making a cup of coffee.
The production brief imagined different moods across the three coffees: morning for The Natural, noon for Bowling Green, and golden hour for Riverside Half Caff. The individual films and the combined montage bring those perspectives together as a shared New York City coffee story.
Watch this Bowling Green film here, or explore the dedicated NYC light roast montage watch page. A looping montage also introduces the films on the Oval homepage.
Understand the coffee
A New York name. A sourcing story. A light roast.
Bowling Green connects a Lower Manhattan namesake with Oval’s New York City coffee roots. Its name, sourcing attribute, roast style, and brewing format each tell you something different about the coffee.
- Women-Grown
- A sourcing attribute, rather than a flavor or brewing method. Explore the Women-Grown Coffee guide for Oval’s explanation and check the current product page for details about the coffee being offered.
- Light roast
- Oval develops Bowling Green for clarity, sweetness, and clean structure. Grind, water, coffee dose, and brewing method all influence what you taste in the cup.
- Whole bean or pour-over
- Choose whole beans to grind for your own brewer, or pre-portioned ground coffee in a built-in filter for brewing over a mug with hot water.
Film synopsis
An editorial overview of the coffee and setting featured in the film.
Bowling Green is Oval Coffee Roasters' Women-Grown light roast coffee, roasted in New York City. The film connects the coffee to Lower Manhattan, Bowling Green Park, The Battery, and the everyday motion of New York City. The coffee is built for clarity, sweetness, clean structure, and repeatable brewing. Bowling Green is available as Whole Bean Coffee and as Pour Over Single Serves for brewing anywhere with hot water and a mug.
Choose your Bowling Green format
Whole bean
One 8.82 oz whole-bean bag to grind fresh for your preferred brewer. Shop whole bean.
Eight pour overs
Real ground coffee for brewing over a mug. Shop the 8-count caddy.
Discovery set
One 8.82 oz whole-bean bag and eight single-serve pour overs in one set. Shop the set.
100-count case
Individual pour overs for shared service. Shop the bulk case.
A few things to know before brewing
Are the single-serve pour-overs instant coffee?
No. The filter holds real ground coffee. Hot water passes through the grounds to brew your cup; the grounds do not dissolve. Follow the brewing tutorial for opening the filter, placing its arms over a suitable mug, and pouring slowly.
Which format fits my coffee routine?
Whole beans suit those who have a grinder and prefer to adjust a brewing recipe. The eight-count pour-over caddy suits individual cups at home, work, or while traveling with access to hot water and a mug. The discovery set combines both formats; the 100-count case offers individually packed servings for shared coffee occasions.
Where can I find Bowling Green near me?
Use Oval’s store locator to explore participating retailers. Coffee profiles and formats vary by store, so confirm the item you want with the retailer. You can also explore the Bowling Green collection online.