Mr Lyan has returned to London to open Seed Library in Shoreditch

Considering Chetiyawardana and Lawrence are two of the busiest people in the business (not only opening bars but also launching their own drinks brands and collaborating with other creators), my first question for the duo is simple: why on earth are they opening another bar? "When Ryan planted the seed of this idea, I was like, ‘we have to do this'," says Lawrence.

Behind the Seed Library name

Seed Library cleverly encapsulates the ethos behind the drinks, as Chetiyawardana explains: "The ‘Seed' part is about the knowledge that is held in seeds… ‘Library' is about having communal, open repositories of knowledge and letting go of what we think we know… this bar is about stripping away."

Guests will find familiar drinks with less familiar ingredients, where cocktails take the constructs of classic serves and veer in another direction. For example, the perilla gin and tonic uses perilla leaves to bring a nutty edge and is served as a lowball; a martini uses sancho leaves rather than an olive or lemon zest; and there's a coriander seed gimlet. The menu will change regularly too, as often as every two weeks, says Lawrence, which he says logistically will be "a fucking nightmare".

For Chetiyawardana, classics as we know them have never really been his style, but Seed Library is a real opportunity for him and his team to show how they can be reframed.

"I still believe in the classics, but a lot of the time everybody just accepts them. It's very Western – cocktails exist in a lot of other places… It's exciting for us to ask what other things can we use while still making them accessible. We will still use them as a guide, as I don't want to erase them either."

Eastern promise

Opening a bar this stripped back is a bold move, but it's a product of the duo's experience and a project that is rooted in what east London stands for right now, says Lawrence.

"We wouldn't be able to open a bar like this without having been on the journey we've been on… It's reflective of the immediate area – east London's grown up too."

Chetiyawardana's own connection to the area is a clear drive for opening Seed Library, something he says has been a decade in the making. "The first time I lived in London this was my home and it has been mapping and following along with our time and journey… [Seed Library represents] what it is to be in east London now. The area went from being a creative hub to a tech hub with big brands moving in, and now that's started to balance back – this is a bar in and for east London."

Calling it a cocktail bar, as we know the term, isn't a straightforward definition for Lawrence. "There's a non-cocktail bar vibe to it. We talked about it as a pub using the US description of what a pub is." And that, he says, will be reflected in the service, with the floor team encouraged to eschew over-complicated or involved explanations of the menu and to leave guests to relax and explore the drinks at their own pace. Knowing some of the highly experienced staff already in place, this approach to service has and will, he admits, be a big change training wise.

There will also be low-intervention wines, sharing snacks and guest dishes appearing from chefs in east London and beyond – Lawrence even dangles the promise of potato smiles on the snack menu. It certainly seems that the bar will feel like a home away from home. When I ask what they want the legacy of Seed Library to be, Lawrence's sentiment reflects this perfectly: "I want this bar associated with the memory of popping out for one drink but staying for four. It's not just about the cocktails either, it's about the good times. I want people to cancel their dinner reservations."