City café mimics the layout of rural villages

The intricately designed café and bar provides multiple seating areas connected by winding paths.

Spotted: Design and architecture studio Portal 92 used the layout of traditional rural communities as inspiration for The Village Café.

Located in the busy city of Moradabad, Uttar Pradesh, India, the café is designed to make regular visitors feel at home. Through extensive use of plants and semi-secluded seating areas, the café mimics the feel of a village. 

Winding paths allow visitors to take multiple routes to their destination, indoor and outdoor seating is available. The materials used throughout reflect the local region.

All plants are native to the area, and brass fittings reference the region’s long history of trade in the metal. Indoor pendant lamps suspend from the ceiling and the flooring of the central court is made from broken slabs of rough black Kadappa stone found locally in India.

Bringing the outdoors inside, or at least into view, remains a common theme for city dwellers keen to stay in touch with nature. Research shows the importance of the natural environment to peoples’ health.

Springwise has spotted innovations ranging from green gyms that use natural materials and movements to app-controlled vertical hydroponic farms for use in small, indoor spaces.