First conceived in South Korea with the 2017 opening of Café Yeonnam-dong 239-20, these tea and coffee houses use optical illusions to trick visitors into seeing flat scenes instead of their normal 3D world. Completely white furniture, walls, and floors are outlined in black comic book-style lines and shadows. Flat curtains and flowers add to the visual deception. Even cups, utensils, and take-out bags look like flat-line drawings.

The concept was apparently inspired by the hit South Korean TV show W, where the characters wrestle between the real world and an alternate universe located inside a webtoon.

The original 2D café became a viral phenomenon thanks to guests posting photos of the mind-bending decor, eliminating advertising costs for the owner and spawning copycats all over in places like Japan, Russia, Singapore, Malaysia, and most recently, Chicago.

Escapism is the name of the game for these dramatic two-dimensional eateries and tea houses. Visitors can imagine themselves in their most beloved manga, or even on set for A-ha’s 1985 “Take on Me” music video. For the Paris-themed 2D Chicago café, which opened its doors in February 2022, the owners cite its raison d’être as a healing diversion from the COVID-19 pandemic.

“The post-pandemic dining experience is very different from before,” said Kevin Yu, who co-founded the 2D Restaurant with his wife Vanessa Thanh Vu, adding that “people want a special and unique experience to help them forget the hardship of the past few years. We have one mission, and that’s to bring joy to our community.”

In Russia, the owner actually used the 2D decor scheme to save money. Looking for an eye-catching way to start a business without many resources, he found that the monochromatic design required some paint but minimized the need for more expensive ornamentation.

Each café is independently owned and provides its own unique fare. In Korea, patrons can sample iced oat lattes and tiramisu, while in Japan one might order strawberry shaved ice and a brown sugar assam black tea. The 2D Malaysian version sticks to boba tea and boxed bento lunches, while Singapore’s Café Monochrome provides a full menu of savory dishes including an asparagus and wagyu donburi rice bowl and chili crab fries. The Russian Café Bw keeps it simple with its tried and true coffee, and the Chicago eatery currently offers individually-made Vietnamese phin coffee and colorful mochi doughnuts, though they plan to add Asian-inspired crispy chicken sandwiches soon.

No matter the cuisine, the black-and-white theme of each restaurant provides a theatrical backdrop, allowing the colors of the food and drinks to really pop. The brilliant reds of cherry tomatoes, buttery yellows of breakfast muffins, and perky pinks of pastry glazes really come alive in front of the monochromatic field of view.

This immersive atmosphere of animated imagination is attracting more business owners as well, with companies in London, the Philippines, Tunisia, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates all signing on for 2D-style cafés in the near future.

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Without a doubt, a trip to the Danish capital reveals a veritable splendor of design dynamism, from more famous buildings like The Playhouse, Portland Towers, and the Royal Danish Opera House to even the most commonplace spots.The new Connie-Connie café is one such place. Hip, colorful, and fashionably austere, this up-and-coming spot in Copenhagen Contemporary exudes a stylish modernism that’s distinctly Danish.

An international art center and bastion for creatives both locally and worldwide, Copenhagen Contemporary’s HQ itself is a work of art. Occupying the former site of the B&W Welding Hall, the eclectic space is the perfect blend of industrial vibes and immersive, contemporary spaces for artists and creators to display their work.

It comes as no surprise that its latest addition, dubbed the Connie-Connie Café, is similarly pushing the envelope when it comes to its creative design. Conceived by the imaginative firm Tableau in collaboration with Australian designer Ari Prasetya, the space is painted a vivid seafoam green from top to bottom. This bright hue dominates the room’s palette and sets the stage for the café’s real centerpiece: its 25 unique and distinctly designed chairs.

Dotted throughout the café and exhibited like fully functional works of art, it’s hard not to notice these chairs. Curated by Studio Tableau from 25 different artists, the café’s chairs and benches were all made using Douglas fir off-cuts provided by Danish wood flooring company Dinesen — the same group that inspired the café’s distinctive green color palette. The bar, desk, tables, and three additional chairs were created by Prasetya and perfectly complement the eclectic parade of stylish seating.

The chairs’ creators, consisting of 25 artists hailing from Denmark and around the world, were each asked to design a wooden chair or bench to showcase furniture’s creative capabilities. And design they did, seeing as how no chair in the collection is alike. From blocky benches to shapely seats, chunky, industrial benches to delicate wooden wonders, each one is a work of art, highlighting the ability of furniture to go beyond its essential functionality and enter the sphere of artistic possibility.

All of these chairs and tables are available for purchase at Tableau’s online shop — the perfect opportunity for guests to adorn their own spaces with the café’s creatively curated furnishings.

So much more than just a spot to grab a cup of coffee, Copenhagen Contemporary’s Connie-Connie Café is also a stage for an exhibition of its own, featuring one-of-a-kind chairs that perfectly showcase the Danish capital’s penchant for dynamic, forward-thinking design.

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Because there are strict regulations regarding the separation of food preparation spaces and animals, the architectural duo had to get creative, answering the call in their typical cool style.

Though the project, dubbed “Together Apart,” was completed pre-pandemic, its opening was effected by lockdown and all the ensuing guidelines, and its layout proved to be essential to its success. The space’s design allowed it to function as an animal shelter and cat adoption facility as well as a café, supporting each other and coexisting beneficially for both the local community and its inhabitants.

This is ultimately the goal for the space and its surrounding areas, with Buckminster’s Together Apart Cat Café being only the first stage in construction on the surrounding lot (itself an area zoned by the city to encourage mixed-use communal spaces). The café, despite its necessary divisions, makes use of its space in creative and unexpected ways that could also accommodate other activities. As Davidson Rafaildis co-principal Stephanie Davidson explains, “We are interested in connecting activities that are otherwise problematic to come together.” In this case, cats and caffeine.

To accomplish this, the pair made the space accessible from either end, allowing for the two halves to operate independently while still adhering to local health code regulations. Of course, the two are still connected via “many sliced, mismatched, misaligned, and mirrored elements in the space,” according to Davidson.

The spaces meet in the center with an overlap area that’s cleverly integrated into the overarching design scheme. Transparent partitions and a full-fledged glass wall encourage connectivity and the chance to encounter the café’s feline residents, while the “human” space is lined with benches for visitors who want to enjoy a hot cup of joe.

Though the color palette here is neutral, it serves as the perfect backdrop for all the zigs and zags of the partitions and clever architectural details. The whole effect encourages a sense of continuity within the space despite its physical separations; though distinct halves of the same whole, one never feels that far away from a furry friend or two. The café’a rear area, where the “catio” is located, contains a nine-foot-tall masonry wall ideal for supporting a possible second floor in the future, if necessary.

Thanks to the city’s new zoning ordinances, lots of projects that creatively fulfill multi-use spatial needs are now on the horizon — and Davidson Rafailidis will almost certainly have a hand in developing them. With their eye for blurring the line between the indoors and outdoors and creating community-driven spaces, the possibilities are endless. As Davidson says, “The richness in how spaces might be shared, and how different programs could co-exist with a lot of density and visibility, is really exciting to us.” Until then, residents will have to be content with the Together Apart Cat Café: great news for feline fans and coffee connoisseurs in this historic Buffalo neighborhood.

The post The Perfect Combo: How Davidson Rafailidis Created a Stylish Cat Café in Buffalo first appeared on Dornob.

Red5studio didn’t need to weave these metal strips into a typical nest shape or use any shades of brown to evoke the feeling of a nest. Their abstracted interpretation sets the tone in a refreshing shade of pale yellow, partially obscured by a living tree sprouting from the sidewalk out front. And while it’s certainly distinct from the homes and businesses that surround it, the cafe manages to avoid alienating its neighbors. As different as it is, it feels like it fits right in.

The architects previously created another location for café brand September called “Autumn and Fall Leaves.” This location, “The Wind and the Nest,” continues that story. They wanted to focus on the feeling of fresh air, movement, and connection to nature while also establishing an engaging series of nooks and crannies within the café that encourage visitors to get comfortable, have conversations, and enjoy both the food and the setting.

That invitation to linger is a striking departure from the fast-paced café and restaurant culture in many other countries like the U.S., which often prioritizes moving patrons in and out quickly to accommodate the greatest possible number of people per day. Here, comfort is prioritized, and as you walk through each level and each outdoor terrace, you enjoy a feeling of discovery. With all that greenery in an urban environment and the visual interest of the architecture itself, you could spend hours just taking in the scenery.

One of the coolest things about this design is that the steel ribbons actually sway slightly in the wind, “like a symbolic image of birds on a branch,” as the architects explain. That gives the building a dynamic feeling, almost as if it’s alive.

The designers explain that “to create the familiar and characteristic feeling of September, we use gentle neutral tones such as white, beige, rose-orange, and natural wood colors. Besides that, the circular image and the curve [reoccur in] the glass holes of the entrance, stairs, on the wall, and even just the tiny details on the furniture. The wind’s image is led by curves in space, through the ceiling, walls, and floor, creating a light feeling like a breeze spreading into each corner.”

“If the rooftop is an aerial garden, the lamp section is like a branch supporting the nest, and this is also the highlight of the space for those who love to check in and is the smoking area. The entire furniture and space was inspired by bird’s nests, curves, branches, birds on branches, and simply a tiny dot circle, all creating a bird’s nest in the heart of the city.”

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Designed by Nguyen Khai Architects & Associates (NKAA), the four-story residence is a fresh take on the Vietnamese architectural trend of wrapping homes with airy perforated facades that blur the boundaries between indoors and out, regulate sunlight, and allow for plenty of natural ventilation. In this case, vertical white louvers set in front of all-glass walls provide just the barest hint of privacy for the building’s inhabitants, with wide horizontal strips blocking views from the sidewalk below. This visibility to the world outside is buffered by placing less private functions on the outer edges of the building, like dining tables, kitchen counters, and stairways.

The design began with an existing 18-year-old house that was in dire need of renovation. The footprint measures just 376 square feet, and is fully occupied at the lowest level by the café run by the building’s owner. The nearly all-white café features sculptural furniture, bamboo chairs, and living greenery, a theme that continues as you ascend into the residence above. The next level up is home to the clients, a couple and their two young daughters, while the third floor and half of the fourth floor host grandparents and uncles. The “sacred space” is a balcony tucked behind the louvered facade, accessible to the whole family.

Working with such a confined floor area, the architects managed to make each level feel airy and comfortable. Platform beds are set along the rear wall behind sliding woven screens, beside the bathrooms. The kitchens are small, but when you’re gazing out all that glass at the world outside, it’s hard to feel confined. Smart details like a bench with a sliding table that also serves as the base of a ladder-like staircase make the most of the space available. The grandparents’ level has a somewhat more conventional layout with a dining table and benches, and the uncles’ lofted bedroom nooks stagger upwards toward the roof.

“Spending time talking to and understanding the essential needs of the owner, we designed Tiam in a way to give him a better standard of living, along with valuable experiences for each and all members in the house,” say the architects. “It has three floors, one attic, a balcony, and a terrace. The effective solution for such limited built area is to design the interior as minimal as possible, and to create continuous and open spaces. We create functional zones and place objects in order to bring members of the family closer to each other, but still be able to have their private spaces if necessary.”

They add that “plant pots of different sizes are found in every corner of the building. Plant pots on the louvers, balcony, terrace, and inside the house create a calm and pleasant atmosphere. Although Tiam is located near a crowded crossroad, all family members still feel close to nature and [enjoy] a peaceful living space.”

The post NKAA Fits Café and 3-Generation Home Into Tiny Corner Lot in Vietnam first appeared on Dornob.

When Los Angeles-based Wick Architecture & Design was approached to creatively outfit a small L-shaped café on the bottom floor of an office building in Newport Beach, California, principle architect David Wick knew he’d need to find a creative way to make the relatively unremarkable space pop for visitors. What he came up with may not rival the Sistine Chapel, but it’s a beautiful way to bring some freshness and modernity to the classic ceiling fresco.

Teaming up with landscape design firm LAND, which handled the exterior portions facing a shared courtyard, Wick produced a pretty incredible space. The bottom half of the fittingly named Stereoscope Café looks like a fairly ordinary coffee shop, but when you look up, you get quite a treat. Not only is the ceiling covered in Renaissance imagery, but it’s in 3D, giving it a fun look even if you aren’t wearing special glasses (but honestly, why not bring some if you plan on visiting?).

Wick explains that “Granite Properties approached us to create a ‘statement’ coffee shop for Stereoscope Coffee in Newport Beach, CA. The 672-square-foot L-shaped space is located on the ground floor of their six-story office building. The tall and narrow space allowed for a unique design opportunity. Referencing Italian masterpieces like Correggio’s Assumption of the Virgin in Parma or Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel in Rome, Nashville based artist / photographer Christy Lee Rogers, purveyor of modern baroque underwater photography, was selected to cover the ceiling and walls.”

“Her piece, The Reunion of Cathryn Carrie and Jean was translated by Wick A+D into a 3D art piece placed on the ceiling and gradating to the white as it flows down the walls. The art is viewed by donning retro 3D glasses that line the white oak shelves. The baroque, minimalist aesthetic is completed with white oak bench seating, white matte tile, and Blue Orca marble.”

The result is cool enough to make it worth a stop in Newport Beach, even if you’re not a coffee drinker. The way the imagery fades down the walls of the café to join the understated, gallery-like feel of the rest of the space gives it a little something extra.

Rogers’ underwater works are truly spectacular, and worth a look for their own sake. The Hawaii-born artist creates her effects using refraction of light “through a fragile process of experimentation,” building “elaborate scenes of coalesced colors and entangled bodies that exalt the human character as one of vigor and warmth, while also capturing the beauty and vulnerability of the tragic experience that is the human condition.” You can check out her behind-the-scenes process of creation and buy her pieces in the form of oversized art scarves at her website.

The post Stereoscope: Part Café, Part 3D Viewing Experience first appeared on Dornob.

As you approach, you’ll see two circular entrances ringed by perforated metal screens, the word “FAIRYLAND” emblazoned above one of them. This mood-setting detail gives you an idea of what you’ll find inside. This is no ordinary café. It’s a place that parents, caregivers, and kids can enjoy together, and it really does feel like stepping into a whole new world.

For kids, Fairyland probably feels like heaven. That’s kind of what it looks like, too. Undulating sheets of acrylic on the floors and ceiling mimic the look of an “ocean of clouds” in the central play area known as “Cloudy Town.” This space also features tree houses, slides, a miniature carousel, and a pit full of translucent balls. Then, within the “Golden Castle,” fireplaces and candles create a glowing atmosphere. A white gallery is tucked away for quiet time and privacy.

Adults aren’t neglected, either. In addition to the small pitched-roof houses scattered around inside, there are also comfortable dining areas overlooking the play areas, complete with U-shaped couches. It’s easy to imagine groups of moms gathering here to chat and connect while keeping an eye on the children.

One of the project’s lead designers notes: “One morning my daughter Tangtang was drawing out her dreamy fairyland, and I really want[ed] to make that dream come true so more kids c[ould] come and join in this wonderful fairyland. The exterior facade of the restaurant is made of aluminum panels with punctures of various sizes on it to create [the] effect of ripples woven together. Behind these ripples, a world between reality and dreams is created for kids. The front lobby is a circular space surrounded by a forest of lights, which is composed of 1000 acrylic tubes that are able simulate the effect of sunlight shining through thick layers of leaves to provide a unique forest experience [using] the reflection of the mirrored wall.”

“Kids, there will be no unwitnessed life [here], because we’ll be here for you, and every one of you will be the shiny star because we made a stage for you. Red velvet curtains slowly reveal the gateway to old memories with neon lights, wood floors, beautiful wallpaper, and crystal chandeliers. The future and the past are now interweaved, and the stage is ready for you to dance. [Even the] restroom becomes the daydream for kids. Cotton candies become girls’ favorite cloud lamps and mirrors, and boys can be astronauts traveling space.”

Don’t these pictures make you wish there were more spaces like this, where kids can experience a little bit of magic mixed in with the more mundane aspects of daily life?

The post Storybooks Spring to Life at the Fairyland Kids Café first appeared on Dornob.

But with the opening of Willmott’s Ghost, a new Italian eatery, anyone can pop in for an hour or two, any day of the week. You won’t get to tour the famous greenery or the five levels of botanical workspaces, but you can dine on Roman-style pizzas, fried gnocchi, clams, and tiramisu in a small section of one of the domes.

The latest establishment from esteemed restauranteur Renee Erickson, Willmott’s Ghost offers about 50 seats in a jewel box of a space decked out in an appetizingly crisp palette of materials and colors, including palest pink, mint, deep marine blue-green, white Carrera marble, and metallic gold. Accessed through its own subtly marked entrance, the café is just as beautifully lit as you’d expect, especially given its unique location within the domes.

You’ll find no Italian stereotypes here, nor an overabundance of midcentury modern nostalgia. Vertical lines draw the eye up toward the glass, with crescent moon booths and globe-shaped lamps giving the space a little extra sparkle.

While the Spheres were created by architecture firm NBBJ, Willmott’s Ghost is the work of Seattle-based Heliotrope Architects, who liken the experience to “building a ship in a bottle.” They add: “The design team drew inspiration from the unique geometry of the [spheres] and the bright, airy environments of modern art museums and galleries.”

“Enclosed within a spherical envelope, the area housing the restaurant proved an incredible — and inspiring — challenge, as much of the architecture is dictated by curves. Curved leather banquettes and booths hug the glass perimeter. Curved walls clad in painted wood pickets define the dining room, and curved bars with Italian marble tops organize the space.”

“Avoiding the tropes of Italian restaurant aesthetics, the architecture and design evoke classical themes written in a contemporary language. Willmott’s Ghost takes its name from the thistle-like flower christened in honor of Victorian horticulturalist Ellen Ann Willmott.”

The menu celebrates Italian cuisine at its best: when it’s simple enough for its star ingredients to shine. Rustic rectangles of pizzas are adorned with seasonal toppings. Plates of thinly-sliced prosciutto and artisanal cheeses are drizzled in Sapori olive oil. Local specialities like Coho salmon are accented by aromatic herbs and citrus. Get a reservation if you want a table, or walk in and sit at the bar.

If you want to see more of the Spheres, just be sure to time your trip to coincide with the first or third Saturday of the month to enjoy a free “open house” tour. Make a reservation first, though, as slots are limited and fill up quickly.

The post Willmott’s Ghost: A Chic Café Inside the Amazon Spheres first appeared on Dornob.

What do you do with an abandoned supermarket that’s no longer needed for its original purpose but still has great bones? In this case, transform it into a celebrated, completely free homeless shelter for 42 full-time residents. “Shelter From the Storm” is more than just a place for unhoused people to lay their heads at night — it’s a thoughtfully designed community that could serve as a model for similar projects around the world.

Designed by Holland Harvey Architects, the London shelter now bears few signs of its former identity. Its spacious open interiors have been converted into cozier, more domestic-feeling spaces. Guests and residents can even enjoy a cheerful on-site café space full of plants.

The original building clearly had plenty of life left in it, and many of its elements are still present, including the brick walls, concrete columns, and visible ductwork. All this gives the space a somewhat industrial feel, albeit one softened by the addition of wood floors, residential-style lighting, and tiled surfaces in pink and white.

The architects explain: “Upon arrival, guests are greeted with an entrance space that is domestic in scale with a smaller private room directly adjacent if needing to compose themselves before entering the shelter. As you move through the shelter, the scale of each space slowly increases, aiding a smooth transition to the open kitchen and dining area.”

“Throughout the project, each detail was carefully considered, ensuring robustness, dignity, and a sense of ownership for the guests. Bedrooms and bathrooms are based upon typical domestic typologies. For example, sinks and mirrors are separate, providing guests with something of their own within a communal space.”

They add: “An essential part of our undertaking was to understand and respond to preconceived ideas around homelessness and the homeless. Our approach to this was to embed the idea of transparency into the scheme. This was achieved through the insertion of new windows and internal openings that allow views in, out, and through the space. Similarly, the dual use of the shelter as a community café aims to open up the shelter to the wider community. By inviting the general public into the shelter, they are simultaneously invited into the debate about how to demystify homelessness.”

Shelter From the Storm has a primary aim of reintegrating its residents back into society, and it shows that with the respectful way in which they’re all treated. The shelter aims to house and support people no matter who they are or where they come from, noting that they “do not shy away from difficult cases that require extra perseverance, understanding, and care.”

The organization works in collaboration with both large corporations and third party institutions to offer work opportunities to residents. Running on donations, they manage to provide all of this care at a cost of less than £20 per guest per night, which is much lower than the amount it typically costs city and state governments to have people living on the streets. If you’re interested in learning more about their compassionate model, check out STFS.org.uk.

The post Abandoned London Supermarket Transformed Into a Homeless Shelter first appeared on Dornob.

Elevating a naturally breathtaking venue to new levels of beauty is challenging stuff. Swan Lake Park, a natural wetland close to the Yellow Sea in China’s Shandong province, has been a mecca for birdwatchers for eons now. October is an especially popular time for the park, as it’s then that ornithology enthusiasts swarm to watch bevies of Great Swans arriving from Siberia for their annual migration and stay through the winter. It’s known locally as the “Hometown of the Great Swan.” Yes, this venue is truly magnificent, with reeds stretching out as far as the eye can see and babbling brooks winding through the marshlands.

Trace Architecture Office (TAO) was recently chosen to transform the park into an unparalleled sightseeing destination where tourists could be swept away by the extended panoramic views and surrounding dense pine forests, with or without any fine-feathered creatures around.

Background

From November to April every year, over 10,000 swans fly into Swan Lake Park from Siberia and other areas, with over 100,000 tourists trekking there to see them. Some just enjoy the experience, while others capture the graceful fowl with cameras. Others write about the surreal happening, and others still capture the awesome birds with watercolors and oils. Rongcheng shops overflow with swan-themed memorabilia, and many of the hotels and restaurants prominently feature swans in their decor. The local conservation sector regularly disinfects the lake area, too, monitoring the health of the swans and spreading food on the surface of the lake whenever it freezes.

The Main Building

TAO first conceived a casual café and restrooms on the site for the tourists’ personal comfort. Simply called “The Bridge,” the building in question is 73 feet long and bordered by a thick pine forest on the rear, with the front facing the quagmire. Although the structure seems to float over the water like an enchanted cloud, it’s actually made of cast concrete and sheathed in wood shingles that will eventually fade to gray over time. TAO designed the bridge to meld with the surroundings, making sure it enhanced the landscape rather than take away from it.

The Catacomb Connections

Some spectators have compared the hallways that run along the sides of the structure to those of crypts or catacombs. Indeed, the hallways closest to the pine forest are reclusive and quiet, in stark contrast to the ones on the west side that face the marshland, which are decidedly more airy and inspirational. The two paths sometimes come together, too, creating entrances and connections that sometimes lead to stairs, affording guests multiple visual experiences.

The Viewing Tower

The Viewing Tower is a detached structure located next to the Bridge. It stands a little over 50 feet tall and faces the water, providing a beacon for visitors to enjoy the best possible view of the bayou and nearby Mt. Mashan. It’s encased with the same wood shingles as the Bridge, too, with its sole source of light being a large skylight in the middle of the roof. That stream of light bathes the interior in sheaths of shapes and shadows from top to bottom as people climb the spiral wooden staircase to the tower’s apex. As the light gets brighter, the peak of the tower grows closer and finally yields to a platform that provides a panoramic view of Swan Lake in all its natural glory.

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How It Works

The café’s robotic waiters came courtesy of Ory, a Japanese startup company who created the four-foot tall machines specifically to be controlled by disabled individuals from remote locations. In total, ten people controlled the bots that serviced the café. Two-way microphones and discreet body cameras let the operators hear and see what was happening in real time. They then used their eyes to make the robots walk, survey their surroundings, have conversations with customers, and deliver food and drinks.

The Inspiration

A popular 2008 anime called Time of Eve portrayed the future as one in which androids are as common as humans and valued as equals. That fantasy inspired the folks at Ory to manifest it in real life. They entered a joint venture with the Nippon Foundation and All Nippon Airways, and before long Dawn ver. β was born.

The Purpose

Beyond just proving that robotics can enhance life for everyone, the goal of the pop-up café, which ran from November 26th through December 10th, 2018, was to show how severely disabled people could still do a job that required a pretty extensive amount of movement. The most exciting and progressive part of the undertaking was the fact that it was still humans interacting with the clientele — a huge leap forward from those robots that are simply programmed to repeatedly perform a single task.

About the Staff

The Dawn ver. β staff was comprised made up of people with all different forms of paralysis, ranging from spinal cord injuries to ALS. They were each paid 1,000 yen per hour ($8.80 in US dollars), which is the standard wage for most part-time work in Japan. On top of that, they all got to work from their homes or other informal remote environments. No input other than eye movement was used to communicate instructions to the robots.

Past Successes

have been around for a while now, proving themselves successful in a variety of scenarios. Most are equipped with cameras, microphones, speakers, and two-way video systems.

One of their greatest achievements has been allowing chronically ill children to remotely participate in classroom learning and activities. The bots have also participated in highly extolled graduation ceremonies.

Looking Forward

Today, Ory’s robotic waiters face an uncertain future. The company raised money for them from crowdfunding and sponsors, but it’s not enough to open a permanent location any time soon. As is often the case with innovative startups, their future depends on how highly critics rate the success of the pop-up (the reviews are still coming in) and how much investors are willing to put towards a full-fledged operation.

The post Paralyzed People Operate Robotic Waiters in Futuristic Japanese Café first appeared on Dornob.

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In this digital age we live in, it’s almost impossible to fight the urge to constantly capture everyday life and the world around us. This is particularly true when it comes to social media platforms like Instagram, which has single-handedly driven hotels, restaurants, and cafés everywhere to strive for more aesthetically-pleasing designs, all in hopes that customers will be wowed enough to photograph them, upload them to their stories and profiles, and geotag them so that all of their followers know exactly where to find them.

This craze has sparked the imagination of many designers who are into all things weird and wonderful — things that are celebrated in all their glory on social media. One of the latest creations to come from that world is a wacky café in South Korea whose interior has been designed to look like a cartoon.

Café Yeonnam-dong opened in Seoul last year and has been making waves across the internet ever since. The quirky establishment boasts an entirely monochromatic interior, with black and white markings all over the walls, floors, ceiling, and even on the furniture so as to give everything the flattened, two-dimensional look of a drawing. The overall effect is both disconcerting and playful, allowing visitors to pretend that they have stepped into the pages of a children’s book while they sip their coffee and eat pastries. More specifically, they might feel like they stepped into the animated Korean TV series W.

Visitors are drawn in by the distorted reality of it all: real people eating real food, drinking real drinks, and sitting on real furniture while surrounded by things that have been made to look fake and cartoonish. This effect is achieved by tracing black lines along the contours of the interiors, which themselves are painted white. Flat curtains have been drawn onto the windows, details of the leather furniture have been drawn onto the flat backgrounds against which customers sit, and an exaggerated herringbone pattern and woodgrain finish have been sketched over the surface of the floor.

All of this drawing takes the perspective and depth out of the space, as the shadows typically cast in corners, or along the grooves in a coffee cup, are absent, lending a strange sense of flatness to the space and the elements within it. Picture frames are drawn onto the walls, and windows are drawn into the cupboards. It’s a very light-hearted environment, and one that has been shared again and again on platforms like Instagram.

There are a couple splashes of color in some of the pretty table flowers and the garnishes on the sides of the cakes, but apart from that, it’s the customers that really fill this black and white wonderland with vibrancy. 

The post Black and White Café in South Korea Looks Like a Real-Live Cartoon first appeared on Dornob.

One new café in Melbourne’s trendy Fitzroy suburb is taking all its cues from the color, texture, and character of bricks, working them into both its interior design and its branding. The Bentwood café is located in a former showroom that belonged to the famed furniture manufacturer Thonet, who themselves made the iconic Bentwood chair that’s now widely used in cafés and restaurants around the world.

Before the building was home to the Thonet showroom, it belonged to C.F. Rojo & Sons, a company that also made wooden furniture, so it’s safe to say that craft has always been at the heart of this 20th-century building. Today, it’s owned by local coffee magnate Julien Moussi, who had the idea to turn it into a café whose design would go beyond that of the average coffee shop. The building wasn’t much more than an empty shell when architects Ritz & Ghougassian came on board to transform it into the Bentwood café, but in a lot of ways, that blank canvas (along with the openness of the brief) left a lot of room for interpretation. The architects explain: “There wasn’t a whole lot that was left other than the original red brick facade. However, I think the essence of its past is still there.”

This “essence” was taken and turned into the starting point for the café’s design and identity. The industrial character of the surrounding area has been respected and channeled into a contemporary yet understated treatment of the building. The color of the interior is executed in a range of rusts, reds, and browns, all of which sprung out of the original brickwork. One of the biggest alterations to the space was the installation of a deep coffered ceiling, which itself was comprised of sheets of steel that were treated with a red oxide primer. This treatment is similar to that of the walls, some of which have been clad in bespoke metal sheeting to create a uniform layering throughout the interiors.

Red bricks make up the floors and the exposed walls. The seating in the café is, unsurprisingly, comprised entirely of Bentwood chairs, while the tables are made from clean and crisp cuts of pale timber, allowing the interiors’ russet tones to do most of the work from an aesthetic point of view. The café’s generous glazing is fitted with matte black frames, providing customers with ample views out onto the leafy street beyond. Thick concrete columns have also been added into the space, with their gray providing a beautiful contrast to the red of the walls and ceiling.

The architects perceive the project as “pay[ing] homage to the old custodians of the space with the use of Thonet furniture and carefully detailed joinery, whilst reflecting Fitzroy’s brutalist industrial heritage through the use of primed steel wall cladding and ceiling.”

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