Farm Cup Coffee | Liqui Group

Liqui’s cafe design for Farm Cup was another interesting American project for us as they serve both coffee and cocktails. The style of the coffee shop interior design is partly inspired by Bali restaurants similar to those that the owners had seen on a trip to the country. With its bohemian details, the cafe design also reflects the cultural diversity of the Echo Park neighbourhood where it is located. Northwest of downtown L.A., just east of Chinatown, this up-and-coming area is popular with creatives and foodies alike making it a great location for something a bit different. Farm Cup’s focus is on organically grown, single origin coffee sourced directly from the farm owners – perfect credentials for a speciality coffee shop. But this was not a typical coffee shop design. The space not only had to function as a cafe during the day, it also had to work as a cocktail bar at night.

We stripped back the original layout to create a more open-plan interior for the coffee and cocktail bar design with the space being divided into different seating areas with an easy flow between them. The Bali influence of the interior design comes through in the predominance of rattan style chairs complimented by the large woven shades of the pendant lighting. Natural woods have also been used throughout the interior of the cafe design for such things as cupboard doors, shelves, screens, and the counter and table tops. Most notably, wood is used to great effect on the ceiling, both in the form of a tongue and grooved diagonal pattern above the cocktail bar and as large beams traversing the space elsewhere. The central bar is a bespoke design; long and serpentine. Its front is clad in vertical subway tiles adding a heritage look to the whole coffee bar design.

The cafe design includes a mixture of Farm Cup branded elements. Intrinsic to these is the colour yellow which goes well with the warm, green tones used on some of the walls creating a fresh, inviting atmosphere. On the back wall behind the custom-built banquette seating there is a large jungle scene in muted colours. Actual plants have also been introduced throughout the cafe interior design to soften and enhance the appearance of the space. And with a long wall of windows and glazed doors giving a virtually unbroken view of the outdoor seating area, the inside and outside are barely separated, with plants creating a harmonious link between the two.

Outside is a courtyard enclosed by a sloping wall in yellow tiles forming a bright background for the abundance of greenery that surrounds the seating area. The canopy overhead is formed of triangular ‘sails’ in a natural fabric that create visual interest as well as offering shade for diners. The structure is further decorated with festoon lights that help to create a cosy ambience to the space in the evenings. Once again natural wood is used for the slats of the screens around the gate onto the street. Overall, the cafe design is greatly enhanced by the outside space which is like a mini oasis serving coffee and cocktails to the inhabitants of this fascinating area of Los Angeles.