The saying goes, that pink and green should never be seen, but at Holy Matcha, San Diego’s first matcha café, all caution has been thrown to the wind, pairing bubblegum pink walls, tiles, floors and velvet banquettes with tropical wallpaper and plenty of potted plant life that echo the colour of the healthful Japanese green tea powder that the café’s drinks are laced with.
After travelling to Japan in 2014, owner and founder Geraldine Ridaura, found the powder a great replacement for coffee, and returned to San Diego energised to bring it to the masses. Working with San Francisco-based design firm Homework, on the petite space’s design, Ridaura paired playful colourways with brass fixtures and quartz countertops.
In addition to a menu featuring matcha lattes, lemonade and horchata – a creamy and nutty Mexican drink served with ice – there are matcha-infused pastries and snacks, and a curated retail section offering health-focused items from Moon Juice, leather goods and custom made ceramic matcha bowls by Tsuchikara Pottery.
‘I’ve become a passionate advocate of matcha,’ says Ridaura. ‘I’ve received so much feedback already from the community looking for a delicious coffee alternative — of which there are many — but matcha is absolutely one of the most health positive of them all.’
INFORMATION
ADDRESS
3118 University Avenue
-
A celestial New York exhibition showcases Roman and Williams’ mastery of lightingLauded design studio Roman and Williams is exhibiting 100 variations of its lighting ‘family tree’ inside a historic Tribeca space
-
‘He immortalised the birth of the supermodel’: inside Dior’s career-spanning retrospective of photographer Peter LindberghOlivier Flaviano, curator and head of Paris’ La Galerie Dior, talks us through a new Peter Lindbergh retrospective, which celebrates the seminal German photographer’s longtime relationship with the French house
-
Take a bite: Laila Gohar and The Luxury Collection’s ‘Cakes & Candles’ are a sweet treat for the sensesLaila Gohar’s six cake-inspired candles draw on The Luxury Collection’s hotels around the world – where guests can enjoy matching edible confections
-
An intimate spa at high-design New York country hotel Inness is now openInness brings Manhattan-calibre wellness to the rural hamlet of Accord, New York
-
Midtown Manhattan restaurant Ánimo! takes its cues from Mexican morning ritualsJordana Maisie Design Studio creates a minimalistic yet referential setting for Ánimo!
-
The Beachside hotel on Nantucket is ‘a love letter to the American summer’The Beachside on Nantucket is a laid-back hotel designed by Parts and Labor Design studio, part of the Wallpaper* USA 400 consortium
-
Fall in New York? Artist Francesco Clemente and chef Daniel Humm have designed a destination bar worth making the trip forFrancesco Clemente has created a suite of magical friezes for the Clemente Bar, which opens at Daniel Humm’s Eleven Madison Park restaurant in New York this week
-
Sleep like a Prince at Airbnb’s Purple Rain house in MinneapolisAirbnb introduces the newly restored Purple Rain house, a tribute to Prince’s musical genius and the movie and song’s 40th anniversary
-
The new Los Angeles restaurants to book now: indulgent caviar dreams and fresh Mediterranean fareExplore the best new restaurants in Los Angeles, from Puzzle, a Parisian speakeasy on Sunset Boulevard, to Orla, a Mediterranean voyage in Santa Monica
-
One&Only’s portfolio of ultra-luxury escapes reaches out to new horizonsFrom the Maldives to Mexico, One&Only’s resorts and private homes around the world offer exceptional stays in idyllic locations, soon to include a first USA property, designed by Olson Kundig
-
So & So’s Piano Bar is Hell’s Kitchen’s new best-kept secretSo & So’s Piano Bar in New York City provides a seductive backdrop for nightly live music performances that celebrate the ‘high-low’
