Photo:  Masao Nishikawa

The world runs on coffee. Even if you—oh, strange one—aren’t a coffee drinker, you cannot escape coffee culture. And a big part of that culture is, of course, the café. Historically, the coffeehouse has functioned as a social fulcrum of urban life, a congregation space where artistic and intellectual ideas were fostered and developed. It was also an intimate, informal place where friends could gather and talk about the 19th-century equivalent of Girls.

We’re glad to say that the café is alive and well. Despite the flashy distractions of the contemporary city, people still spend time in coffeehouses—a lot of time actually. The last few years has seen a surge of creative café design that reflects this fact, with architects both obscure and famous brandishing their talents to elevate your coffee experience. These projects are each different in their own way, but they all push the limits of what a café can be. Click through for the slideshow.

by Architizer Editors

posted in Uncategorized

tagged cafe, caffeine, coffee, coffee house, germany, india, japan, netherlands, new york, Poland, spain, tokyo, top ten

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