Our Wurst is Ze Best

 Herman Ze German hot dog/sausages has expanded from festival street food to their second unit in Soho and features meat grinders on the wall.

Holes & Hay

 Colander light fittings and table decor at new restaurant and bar Grain Store, Kings Cross

Grain Store also offers Hay Water distilled by their drinks specialist!

Garden Centre Quirky

Guest Spot

Ian Boardman sends in this photo from Hilltop Garden Centre's cafe at Ramsden, Witney.  See more cafe design hanging ideas at http://pinterest.com/turpinsmale/great-cafes-design/

The Future?

At the end of our London Cafe Tours we are often asked what is the future for cafe design if now it is all about the industrial, retro, natural, recycled, comfortably worn look.  I asked the knowledgeable boss of Matthew Algie coffee's Irish business Lachlan MacGillivray his thoughts and he quoted two examples:

Baker D ChiricoMelbourne Bakery Starbucks Tokyo 

Artful WC

 The Gunton Arms in North Norfolk combines great unpretentious food, stunning artwork and quirky design.

Set the Scene

Asian restaurant East Street in W1 uses genuine hanging signs from the countries of its cuisine - Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines, Japan and Korea.  Highly effective scene setting.

Comfortable in its own Skin

Hot tip for 2013 - The Pig. 

 

Robin & Judy Hutson had great success with Hotel du Vin and now son Ollie joins in the kitchen garden.  I have never seen such a complimentary guest comment book.  The Pig sets the pace in terms of design, kitchen garden, sustainability, staff enthusiasm and being 'comfortable in its own skin'.

Salute The Pigs

Whenever there is a question about naming your cafe - consider THE PIG Rooms and Kitchen Garden Food.  Formerly the Whitley Ridge Hotel, it now sports an unforgettable name and distinct theme.  The only drawback might be a lack of business from those communities who avoid pork.

Paperweight at Reception

The National Trust's Book on Pig Keeping is in every bedroom and is used for the bar menu folder.

Corrugated Iron & Wooden Pallets

Grab is a Thai Street kitchen in the City and I love the design simplicity - sheets of corrugated iron, wooden pallets and builders-style lighting

Fit outs don't have to be expensive; they do have to be creative

Birthdays - Our 24th & 1st

   

   

Turpin Smale is 24 years young this month and this blog is celebrating its 1st birthday.  How life has changed since 1988!

Our blog has reached over 50,000 page views and the cafe sector is just so dynamic - there is always someone, somewhere doing an even better, more quirky, tastier, more temptingly displayed cafe.  As a birthday treat for you all, check out our Boards on Pinterest:

• Design  http://pinterest.com/turpinsmale/great-cafes-design/
• Sandwiches  http://pinterest.com/turpinsmale/great-cafes-sandwiches/
• Hot Drinks  http://pinterest.com/turpinsmale/great-cafes-hot-drinks/
• Savouries  http://pinterest.com/turpinsmale/great-cafes-savouries/
• Fruit Display  http://pinterest.com/turpinsmale/great-cafes-fruit-display/
• Cake Display  http://pinterest.com/turpinsmale/great-cafes-cake-display/
• Cold Drinks  http://pinterest.com/turpinsmale/great-cafes-cold-drinks/
• Kids Food  http://pinterest.com/turpinsmale/great-cafes-kids/
• Humour  http://pinterest.com/turpinsmale/great-cafes-humour/

Buckets of Ingenuity

Chozen Noodles' new unit in Borough High Street with lights in buckets from Ikea - the contents of the buckets are changed with the season.  Eye-catching and inexpensive.

Avoid the Corporate Look

Les Trois Garcons in Shoreditch has to be seen to be believed.  Simply amazing.

You just have to smile and marvel at the creativity of the three owners - a Malaysian, a Swede and a Frenchman.

Macaroons on steroids

Seen at Peter Jones' rooftop cafe on Sloane Square: whoopie size (i.e. large) macaroons at £2.60 a pop.

John Lewis have redone the servery but its design is how not to do it. Check out the number of coffee machines and how you can pay for a main course and not even see the cakes. Great company but off the pace in terms of great cafes.