It’s in the Details: What Makes A Good Cafe Layout
A safe space, a study place, a place to simply enjoy coffee and catch up with friends or family. Coffee shops these days have developed a personality that brands them as regular spots for our daily lives and become the homes away from home where people can escape from the stresses of life while enjoying a good cup of coffee and a savory pastry. But how does a cafe heighten the customer’s visit with an experience that matches good food and coffee? What makes a cafe memorable and comfortable to be in?
Like every other place in the food industry, a good and successful cafe will always have the design as one of its most significant aspects. A cafe with a layout that takes note of aesthetics alongside practicality will be a space where customers feel the most comfortable not just for the unique ambiance but also for the good layout that assures almost zero disruption towards the employees traveling from one table to another. So what do good cafes have in common design and layout-wise?
A good cafe will have charismatic exteriors that draw in customers. Depending on the concept, a cafe facade determines the place’s overall appeal and is a chance to show incoming customers an interesting theme that would bleed into the interiors, ensuring a unique coffee shop experience. Aesthetic features like artwork, pleasing colors, ambient lighting, and comfortable furniture should also reflect the cafe’s theme while allowing customers enough comfort while they move around or relax.
A good cafe has a functional interior layout. Ideally, a good cafe is 60% dining area and 40% storage or kitchen space. This layout will ensure that the employees and customers wouldn’t literally clash while walking around the space. These paths around serving stations, counters, and seating areas should also be wide enough to give easier access to people using wheelchairs and other mobility aids. From the entryway, it’s also important that the customers get to see a good view of the menu while they’re still waiting in line.
A good cafe has sustainable characteristics. From the building materials to the furnishing, these pieces selected should be durable enough to last years to help reduce maintenance and replacement costs. With the use of green building materials, the cafe could also create a healthy interior while helping add to the list of spaces that are eco-friendly.
Locally, there are several cafes that tick off these few requirements.
Sunday, Sunday Cafe in Silang, Cavite is inspired by the calmness of Sunday mornings and captures the almost God-blessed moments of waking up with the sun gently shining through the windows and birds chirping outside as a reminder that the day is filled with possibilities that welcome in only the good.
Related read: Sunday Sunday Cafe in Cavite Makes Every Day Feel Like Sunday
Papakape along Ampere Street, Makati is a micro coffee shop situated under a tiny glasshouse that allows for plenty of sunlight to flood the counter. With a coffee bar and dining area set by the small garden with blue walls and cactus plants, the cafe is reminiscent of the Majorelle Garden at Marrakech.
Related read: Papakape: Makati’s One of a Kind Cafe
Carpentry and Coffee in Cainta, Rizal is a carpentry-themed cafe that highlights the rustic theme and was inspired by the owner’s passion for coffee, woodworks, art, architecture, and interior design.
Related read: Carpentry and Coffee: A Rustic Themed Café Highlighting Filipino Culture
Aside from coffee, coffee shops are one of the best places to absorb good energy from unique ambiances inspired by the dreams of these cafe owners and other fellow customers.
