Hey Bird
Guangzhou, China
The stripped-back Hey Bird elicits a distinct sense of humor thanks to two bird-themed art installations that are meant to spark creativity in those grabbing a quick pick-me-up. But patrons don’t have to be artistic to enjoy the muted yet joyful concept by local firm Tomshi & Associates. Marked by concrete and terrazzo, pink accents add a touch of color and femininity to the space, while various types of seating encourage socializing. Because specialty coffee shops are fairly new in China, the firm used Hey Bird’s dynamic brand identity to lure in customers. “Abundant colors and vivid graphic expressions like beautiful curves combine with elegant organic shapes,” says brand designer Camelia Leung. “The space translates them into a unique spatial experience.”
Omotesando Koffee
London
Laboratorio di Idee brought a piece of Japan to London with the first UK outpost of the Tokyo-born specialty coffee brand Omotesando Koffee, which “has a well-established design language of strong Japanese influence,” says Alessandro Perinelli, founder and creative director of the Singapore-based design firm. “For the London outlet, we essentially recreated a traditional Japanese house.” Imagined as the entry courtyard, the foyer is framed by charred cedar boards and granite stepping stones, while in the heart of the home, black joinery and natural ash wood celebrate minimalist Japanese design, fully immersing visitors in the intimate coffee-making experience.
Blend Café
Bangkok
On the campus of Dhurakij Pundit University in Bangkok, the once-neglected ground floor of a library building has given way to Blend Café, an airy hangout crafted by local firm PHTAA Living Design. A long table with a mechanical pulley function that adjusts to three different levels—it can even be retracted fully upright to ceiling height—is the focal point of this multipurpose space, easily adapting to various retail and event needs. Extending the open layout is an oversized steel-glass accordion door that unites the indoors and outdoors. At the heart of Blend are the baristas. Ponwit Rattanatanatevilai, cofounder of the design firm, says that amplifying their skills was essential, leading to an industrial, semicircular feature wall behind the open bar. “We used brick, concrete, and terrazzo to create a warm and welcoming mood,” he says, “for a relaxing experience.”
Ambrosia
Shenzhen, China
To cater to Ambrosia’s fashionable, health-conscious customer, Melbourne design studio Biasol created a minimalist interior for the bubble tea chain’s outpost in Shenzhen, China. The idea was to reinterpret a typical courtyard of a historical Siheyuan home via a feminine lens. The result: a soothing interior that directly reflects the body and blends of the tea. “The atmosphere is light and simple with quality materials and functionality at the heart of it,” says firm founder Jean-Pierre Biasol. With that in mind, a built-in brown leather-upholstered banquette is accompanied by terrazzo-topped round tables, all woven together in a muted peach tone. Opaque glass panels encased within wooden arches frame the entrance and central service counter, while rounded corners and a bright neon sign enhance the space’s soothing environment.
Full Circle
Ubud, Bali
“The brief was to reflect the brand with an Ubud feel,” says X+O’s design director Rebecca Vulic of the relaxed and soulful Balinese café Full Circle, a concept by Expat.Roasters. This translated into a space “inspired by undulating rice fields,” she says, where raised booths and bleacher seating offer views into the central espresso bar. A greenery-filled canopy over the bar references the Ubud Monkey Forest, as does a hand-painted mural by Los Angeles-based artist Tazroc. A material palette of local teak and concrete—Expat.Roasters’ signature material—gives way to terrazzo floors dotted with local stones that recall grains of rice and curved furniture informed by the brand’s hugging hands logo.
