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
-
ALT Paris is a chic and fast-growing jewellery brand to knowThe brand, which has just opened its second Paris boutique, has mastered the art of luxurious minimalism
-
Rediscover a classic midcentury hotel in SydneyFender Katsalidis leads a major renovation of the landmark Sofitel Sydney Wentworth hotel, pairing 1960s modernism with an elevated, Australian-minded reset
-
Haute Couture Week A/W 2025: what to expectFive moments to look out for at Haute Couture Week A/W 2025 in Paris (starting Monday 7 July), from Glenn Martens’ debut for Maison Margiela to Demna’s Balenciaga swansong. Plus, ‘new beginnings’ from JW Anderson
-
New members’ club Beihouse revives Beirut’s architectural heritageFollowing the devastating 2020 explosion, three 19th-century homes in Gemmayzeh become a social hub balancing cultural memory with contemporary luxury
-
Villa One at the One & Only Palmilla — Los Cabos, Mexico -
Martim — Wroclaw, Poland -
Tattersalls Hotel — Armidale, Australia -
KLoé Hotel — Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia -
Casa Hoyos — San Miguel de Allende, Mexico -
Littlenap — Hangzhou, China -
Casa Santa Teresa — Corsica, France
