Atelier Tao+C Designs Blue Bottle Coffee Cafe with Tent-like Canopies on Shanghai's West Bund

Interior studio Atelier Tao+C has completed a new Blue Bottle Coffee cafe on Shanghai's West Bund waterfront, featuring distinctive wooden canopies that create an outdoor atmosphere. The design responds to the site's industrial history, which includes a historic shipyard and Asia's largest former cement factory along the Huangpu River. Part of the Gate M West Bund Dream Center redevelopment masterplanned by Dutch firm MVRDV, the cafe integrates with cultural facilities like Schmidt Hammer Lassen's West Bund Grand Theatre. Inside, slanted timber columns support soaring white painted-wood "canvases" that conceal mechanical services while adding height and lightness. Materials include Douglas fir panelling, laminated wood partitions, and prefabricated concrete elements like the bar and benches, which were assembled off-site to minimize waste. The project is shortlisted for Dezeen Awards 2025. Exterior angular concrete benches offer views of the river through the old factory framework. The West Bund district was revitalized after hosting the Shanghai Expo 2010, with other contributions from Atelier Deshaus and landscape studio Field Operations. Photography is by Wen Studio.