Turning The Tables

Eschewing cookie-cutter interiors, a new breed of cafe is serving up good looks for customers who enjoy a sophisticated style menu with their latte.

- Stephen Todd

IN A CULTURE in which coffee is almost a religion, Australian cafes are like temples – places of worship and congregation for the faithful. Like all holy sites, their look and feel is intended to be transcendent, transporting the user by design.

For the new Lenny cafe in Melbourne’s bayside Albert Park the owners “wanted to create a destination that would become a go-to venue for the local community”, says Kylie Dorotic of Golden, the studio charged with redesigning the heritage corner building. “The front is casual with a communal table, then it becomes more structured as you move down the length of the space,” she says. “Towards the back there’s more room to be relaxed and sit longer.” A palette of light, preppy pastels are offset by pale timber floors, the airy interior enhanced by pivoting plate-glass windows. Furnishings tend to the organic: a handmade timber table, wicker chairs, jaunty lighting by local maker LAAL. Resort-style umbrellas along the sidewalk enhance the seaside vibe; the cult of Lenny is quietly self-assured.