Back in Black

After the success of their first café at SOPI (South Pigalle), KB Coffee Roasters have opened their second establishment, located centrally near the Place de la Bastille. Spacious and bright, this new venue focuses heavily on the team’s un-matched expertise in the world of coffee with a speciality coffee shop, in-house roastery and a seasonal breakfast/brunch menu.

Cultural Aesthetics
In the context of interior architecture, combined with a heavily competitive industry such as hospitality, the quest for a unique identity and originality of design can often be misinterpreted as the need for an overdose of decoration. Contrary to this quest, the impulse to over-design and decorate actually works to obscure the fine anthropological layer of a project. The trace of the actors is evacuated by the tyranny of the trend.

In contrast, the leading idea for this project was not to hide away the processes involved in creating the venue or the products on offer. With an economy of means, this venue design actually seeks not only to reveal, but also to feature the participation of everyone in the project, from the construction team to the kitchen and coffee shop staff.

To achieve such an inclusive design, simple, yet highly effective design decisions have been made. These include the addition of a wide, open-fronted kitchen, an unusually low coffee bar with customer seating, clear partitions to all workspaces and white or black surfaces that blur the venue’s boundaries.

Materials
Floor finished is a white epoxy paint applied on the new concrete slab. Existing walls, new wall lining and set plasterboard ceiling were left untreated. A horizontal strip of black epoxy paint runs through all the walls of the shop. LED strip lighting helps create this raw atmosphere.

Shopfront
A new thermo-lacquered steel shopfront fits into the existing wooden shopfront. The glazed central part rests on a bench hosting ventilation and air conditioning equipment, which opens on the outside through louvered panels.

Main room
After the entrance, the room dedicated to customers leads to the barista bar further. In the middle, the staircase leads to the staff basement. All custom furniture is made of natural varnished pine plywood: a low counter against the window allows customers to sit facing the street; further on, a second counter with drawers and integrated displays are used for takeaway products. A series of silver wall mirrors are arranged to form an angle. 

The Barista Bar
The 8-meter-long bar organises the space around. It is unusually low and unobstructed to allow a close proximity between the barista and patrons.

This monolith, whose structure is made of steel tube, is clad with powder-coated black or white perforated steel sheets. The white solid surface counter integrates in its thickness small equipment - scales, kettles etc. The edges are made of mirror polished stainless-steel. Behind the bar, coffee taps are integrated in a set made of Alps green marble and polished mirror steel. The wooden handles come from re-purposed axes.

The suspended lighting is voluntarily bulky and oversized. Above, a new fireproof glass-panel-ceiling offers abundant light and sky views. On the opposite side, console tables made of natural varnished pine plywood complete the seating of the bar.

The kitchen
The kitchen opens onto the thoroughfare by large windows underlined by a mirror polished steel frame. Here again, the goal is to bring preparation and tasting together as much as possible by promoting transparency, teamwork and products.

Roasting space
The coffee roaster is located at the back of the shop. Access is controlled by full height panels made of white powder-coated steel frames and clear polycarbonate. The backdrop is a back painted ceiling.

Minnaërt Studio: Frank Minnaërt, Alexandra Bedin and Stéphanie Champ

General contractor: Métamorphose
Electrical services: Siebi
Plumbing, ventilation, air conditioning: Cogeclim
Building certifier: Risk Control
Structural engineer: Robert Baria

Client: KB Coffee Roasters