The Caff Is One of Britain’s Cultural Treasures – But if We Don’t Eat in Them, They’ll Disappear

The page functions as a hub of London’s best local eateries and their delicious dishes, celebrating these spots in all their day-to-day glory. Many of them have distinct shopfronts, too, which 30-year-old Rangaswami never fails to point out, often via poetic captions about the history of hot dogs, old school cash registers or musings over what a ch

Coffee shops provided a perfect test case for my theory of digital geography. They were spaces of consumption, in which members of a certain demographic, who were also very active on the Internet, expressed their personal aspirations by spending money. The café space integrated aesthetic decisions across architecture, interior design, and tableware

They showcased trends in both beverages and food. They included a particular selection of music with soft ambient soundtracks, like lo-fi beats. Each café comprised a temple to all forms of contemporary taste—they were total works of art, to use Wagner’s term for a fully immersive aesthetic creation that engages every sense. Cafés turned out to be

Though it was particularly identifiable in cafés, the same sensibility could be found in coworking spaces, start-up offices, hotels, and restaurants—all spaces where time was temporarily spent and aesthetic was flaunted, where physical space was turned into a product.

The Generic Coffee Shop, as I came to think of it, had white subway tiles lining the walls, broad industrial tables made of reclaimed wood, mid-century modern chairs with spindly legs, and hanging pendant lamps fitted with Edison bulbs.