We were standing inside her boutique, Marikoko, staring at the walls and shelves filled with goods collected from her travels to Morrocco, Japan and far off lands. And that's when she said it; "See that pile of gourds there? That's how I want my cafe next door to feel." And we loved it. Our client, Mariko McKittrick, came to us to help her transform her 1100 SF storefront into the neighborhood cafe Leimert Park has been wanting.

Having grown up in the area, Mariko knew what she wanted too. It was to be right next door to her current boutique in a two unit commercial building. A neighborhood go-to from a bygone era retold as a multi-cultural, stylish-yet-unstuffy cafe. The place everyone goes to when they want to see familiar faces after a long day of work or on a lazy hot Sunday. No matter where one comes from, by foot next door or from across town, the stories shared and lives unfolded are always served; and anything off the menu too.

Partly inspired by a pile of gourds, the coffee bar exhibits a curved edge profile. Flat on top and bottom but concave vertically. A touch of organic forms inside a storefront as regular as it is square.

During demolition, an old skylight opening was revealed. We painted it a pale blue to remind us of the sunny LA skies.