See Why This Eatery is a Bookworm’s Dream

2023 Best of Year Winner for Commercial Cafeteria 

Part library, part coffee bar, this 4,300-square-foot company café in Redwood City, California, celebrates the thirst for knowledge. Valerio Dewalt Train transformed an existing clerestory on the top floor of a mid-rise office building into a bookworm’s fantasy, aptly named Refreshed, replete with reading nooks, double-height maple shelves, and an old-fashioned card catalog. An installation overhead depicts a literal whirlwind of ideas: Sheets of U.S. patent drawings and scientific articles swirl upward as if caught in a breeze. Pops of color energize the muted palette. Coffee mugs perch along a wall lined with blue pencils and handmade ceramic vessels in a gradation of warm tones back the serving area. Fostering collaboration and discovery, the interactive concept, completed with in-house experiential graphics team Media-Objectives, encourages employees to keep learning.

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william turner; priya bhat; miles stemper; amanda jurmu; rafael barontini.