Mei Yuan Cafe

Mei Yuan Cafe: A Window to Witness Seasons

If magic exists, which allows the exquisite bustle of Lujiazui to coexist in harmony with the lively charm of the aged community in the neighborhood, the softly opened coffee house in the northeast corner of Mei Yuan Park is the perfect place to observe such an intriguing urban collage. Here you can see office ladies, city joggers, senior musicians, chic trendsetters, construction workers and gardeners all gather under the roof and share a moment of peace.

“The park used to be walled up. It’s great that they opened it.”
In Shanghai, a campaign to make parks “green and open" is quietly underway. Mei Yuan Park, originally surrounded by walls, also aims to become more accessible. We envisioned the Café as a friendly interface connecting the community and the park, therefore we chose pavilion as the architectural form, hoping to achieve a delicate balance between permeability and shelter.

"Have the trees been here the whole time?"
Soapberries with jade leaves, lush camphor with incredible crowns, and upright clusters of hackberries - they are the true natives of the land. Every cut and turn in the design is to leave space for them to grow freely, and therefore its final form is entirely determined by these trees. Such a design method stems from our respect for the plants, and now their branches and leaves are responding in their own way: blocking the sun for people inside the pavilion, inviting birds to come around, and casting beautiful dappled shadows on the walls and on the ground.
The use of floor-to-ceiling glass, ubiquitous gray bricks, and understated textured paint clearly convey our original intention: to create a shelter where people can immerse themselves in nature. Both ends of the glazing are neatly hidden in the ceiling and the brick joints, maximizing the field of vision and perception for its occupants. In addition to the existing trees, we added smaller features such as maple, nandina and Revolution Gold to fill in visual gaps in the landscape, adding rich and staggered layers for the coffeehouse to blend into its lush surroundings.

"Look, purple flowers are popping out!"
Participating in the design and planting of the garden made us realize that the passing of time is far more complicated than four seasons. The life cycle of a plant goes through several rounds of flowering and fruiting, and the speed of change in form is measured in weeks or even days. Through experimental combinations of mixed perennial flowers and plants with staggered flowering periods, we ensure that there are distinct scenes to see throughout the year, and sustainably reduce the frequency of replacement and minimize waste. In spring, one sees lupine, broom, and sage; in summer, agapanthus, and daisies; in autumn, hemp leaf zedoaria and Japanese Aralia; in winter, foxtail ferns and golden leaf sedum, among others. When a seemingly ordinary grass seedling rockets up with unseen blossoms one morning, the surprise and joy of the moment is beyond words.

“Now we have a new spot to hang out.”
Spontaneity and participation are valuable qualities that are hard to come by in a community. Residents nearby enjoy gathering with old pals at the big table near the street, and those with accordions even improvise a piece to accompany the singing. We purposely chose lightweight and flexible furniture and left ample space, inviting everyone to walk around and explore freely, or capture the inspiration of the moment in their viewfinder. The coffee house is an inclusive living room for the community where everyone is welcome and encouraged to be creative.