Kalve Espresso Room / Old Riga is located in the heart of Old Riga, the most historically rich neighborhood in the Latvian capital.
This project is a contemporary café concept that harmonizes with its culturally significant surroundings. With roots in artistry, architecture, and refined craftsmanship, the interior draws heavily from its location - Riga historical center.
The space originally functioned as part of a hotel lobby and back-office area. With no original historic interior elements remaining, the project posed a unique design challenge: transforming a somewhat awkward and irregularly shaped layout into a light, inviting café that fits into the urban fabric.
The space originally functioned as part of a hotel lobby and back-office area. With no original historic interior elements remaining, the project posed a unique design challenge: transforming a somewhat awkward and irregularly shaped layout into a light, inviting café that fits into the urban fabric.
CONCEPT
The interior design caters to a more sophisticated, professional clientele, reflective of the area’s concentration of institutions and offices. This refined atmosphere is conveyed through a deliberate palette of respective textures and materials: a marble mosaic bar, rough stone shelving, stainless steel surfaces, massive dark wood tables, and custom-made furniture crafted in grey-veneered plywood. Light grey textured walls unify and soften the space, while a thoughtfully designed shop area helps organize and anchor the room’s irregular geometry.
Inspired by the essence of an artist’s studio, a creative archive of sorts, the interior incorporates a curated selection of gypsum sculptures from local collectors, antique furniture including a vintage bakery showcase and mirror, and small art objects throughout. These carefully chosen elements lend authenticity, warmth, and a narrative depth to the space.
The interior design caters to a more sophisticated, professional clientele, reflective of the area’s concentration of institutions and offices. This refined atmosphere is conveyed through a deliberate palette of respective textures and materials: a marble mosaic bar, rough stone shelving, stainless steel surfaces, massive dark wood tables, and custom-made furniture crafted in grey-veneered plywood. Light grey textured walls unify and soften the space, while a thoughtfully designed shop area helps organize and anchor the room’s irregular geometry.
Inspired by the essence of an artist’s studio, a creative archive of sorts, the interior incorporates a curated selection of gypsum sculptures from local collectors, antique furniture including a vintage bakery showcase and mirror, and small art objects throughout. These carefully chosen elements lend authenticity, warmth, and a narrative depth to the space.
INTERIOR ZONING
The interior layout is centered around the coffee bar, which serves as both the main visual feature and the spatial anchor of the space. The zoning is designed to support café experiences while responding to the site's irregular geometry. A retail corner showcases coffee products alongside a curated selection of lifestyle items, doubling as a functional spatial divider that helps structure the room. Different seating zones cater to varying customer needs: high bar tables along the windows offer a casual spot for quick coffee breaks or remote work, while standard-height tables provide a more relaxed setting. In the inner room, a more secluded area with low tables allows for meetings or quiet conversations, offering a greater sense of privacy within the overall open plan.
SITE ANALYSIS AND CONCEPT
The concept of this project stands as a thoughtful dialogue between history and modernity, tradition and innovation. We propose it as an example of contextual interior design, and our vision of contemporary cafe concept in somewhat iconic yet overlooked neighborhood of Riga. This project brings a fresh perspective to a neighborhood more often frequented by tourists than by the city’s creative crowd. Though once the cultural and civic core of Riga, in recent years felt somewhat forgotten in the eyes of locals. With this project, we aimed to create a welcoming, contemporary space that reclaims the charm of the area, an inviting café that brings new energy to a place full of architectural heritage but lacking local presence.
The concept of this project stands as a thoughtful dialogue between history and modernity, tradition and innovation. We propose it as an example of contextual interior design, and our vision of contemporary cafe concept in somewhat iconic yet overlooked neighborhood of Riga. This project brings a fresh perspective to a neighborhood more often frequented by tourists than by the city’s creative crowd. Though once the cultural and civic core of Riga, in recent years felt somewhat forgotten in the eyes of locals. With this project, we aimed to create a welcoming, contemporary space that reclaims the charm of the area, an inviting café that brings new energy to a place full of architectural heritage but lacking local presence.
Location:
Zigfrīda Annas Meierovica Bulvāris 10, Riga, Latvia
Authors: Jānis Andersons, Danna Degle-Uškāne
Category: Interiors
Use: Public
Art: Jānis Dzirnieks
Photography: Vika Anisko
Area: 74 m²
Zigfrīda Annas Meierovica Bulvāris 10, Riga, Latvia
Authors: Jānis Andersons, Danna Degle-Uškāne
Category: Interiors
Use: Public
Art: Jānis Dzirnieks
Photography: Vika Anisko
Area: 74 m²