Urbanista — Beirut, Lebanon
Seeking to create a 'place to bring people together, to be human', Houssam and Zeina el-Eid have taken the ground floor of an aging French Mandate apartment block in Gemmayze and turned it into the kind of café that encourages you to linger longer. Purpose-blended coffees from La Colombe and teas from Smith headline, supported by light meals and naughty desserts. Meanwhile, well-stocked magazine racks and hefty sink-in-a-little-deeper club chairs make tearing yourself away a chore. The interior, by London retail designers Caulder Moore in collaboration with the owners, makes the best of exposed brickwork, ducts, industrial lighting and other urban aesthetica. An on-site boutique carries inspiring accessories and limited-edition homewares. And a cosy back-garden terrace floats as if on a rooftop.
ADDRESS
Yanni Building
Rue Goraud
Gemmayze
Beirut
Lebanon
Wallpaper* Newsletter
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox.
Middle East Editor
-
Don't miss Luxembourg's retro-futuristic lab pavilion in Venice
As the Venice Biennale enters its last few weeks, catch 'A Comparative Dialogue Act' at the Luxembourg Pavilion
By Amah-Rose Abrams Published
-
A Berlin park atop an office building offers a new model of urban landscaping
A Berlin park and office space by Grüntuch Ernst Architeken offer a symbiotic relationship between urban design and green living materials
By Michael Webb Published
-
Chaumet’s new book celebrates its most memorable collaborations with photographers
'Chaumet: Photographers’ Gaze' unites jewellery editorials and campaigns captured by major photographers. Co-author Carol Woolton tells us of the ‘addictive' Chaumet archive
By Hannah Silver Published
-
Villa One at the One & Only Palmilla — Los Cabos, Mexico
By Chadner Navarro Published
-
Martim — Wroclaw, Poland
By Daven Wu Last updated
-
Tattersalls Hotel — Armidale, Australia
By Dimity Noble Last updated
-
KLoé Hotel — Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
By Jennifer Choo Last updated
-
Casa Hoyos — San Miguel de Allende, Mexico
By Daven Wu Last updated
-
Littlenap — Hangzhou, China
By Daven Wu Last updated
-
Casa Santa Teresa — Corsica, France
By Daven Wu Last updated
-
K5 — Tokyo, Japan
By Danielle Demetriou Last updated