Cafés
Communal Table Furniture Planning for Cafés
Specify the occupied size, operating clearance and route into the building before choosing furniture by catalogue dimensions.
Explore the ideas
Compare the options
- Set the brief
- Use templates at the size of the actual furniture. Include seated users, open drawers and reclined positions where relevant.
- Compare
- Decide which items need to move independently and which benefit from built-in anchoring.
- Before buying
- Confirm that the largest pieces can turn at the entrance, lift lobby and corridor, or specify assembly in place.
Worked example
A living room sofa must fit through a tight stair turn and leave room for a side table and a reclined seat.
Compare modular sections with a fixed sofa using the actual stair and doorway measurements. Include recliner extension and table reach in the room template before selecting upholstery.
How to test it
Overlay the furniture in its stored and in-use positions, then check both against the measured plan.
Apply it to this space
- Layout
- Place the table in a central but nonblocking position with smaller tables available nearby.
- Detail
- Provide accessible power at table ends and a hard-wearing top with rounded corners.
- Trade-off
- A large shared table is efficient but less comfortable for private conversation.
- Try solo, pair, and group seating
- Check that power cords do not cross walking paths
The Elixir portfolio
Details worth a closer look
