Aspects of openness in Hong Kong coffee shops

Abstract

Until recently, café and restaurant design in modern Hong Kong has been characterized by closed facades that keep cooled air inside in the hot and humid subtropical climate, and interiors that allow limited visual contact with the street and with the kitchen. A new tendency of openness, however, has appeared in specialty coffee shops that have opened over the last decade. In this article we study this phenomenon, querying its significance in relation to the social dimensions of design trends and ideas about openness. The article is based on field studies of over 80 local specialty coffee shops in Hong Kong from 2020 to 2022 and includes analysis of facade and interior design from participant observation studies, photographs and interviews with store owners focusing on the factors that shape design intentions. Our analysis identifies characteristics of open coffee shop facade and interior design and discusses these in relation to openness as a conceptual paradigm in urban research and design studies. Our findings highlight the significance of international and local trends, social media visual cultures, and sustainability issues as considerations in open facade and interior design.