Cafés
Order Counter Floor Plan for Cafés
Draw three layers on the measured plan: fixed points, activities and movement. Move the activities around before moving any walls.
Explore the ideas
Plan in this order
- Start with columns, windows, door swings and service points on a single measured drawing.
- Place the highest-frequency activity first. Put the equipment or storage it uses within the same zone.
- Trace the longest everyday trip and any crossing routes. Show both with furniture and doors in use.
Worked example
A narrow entry serves as both the front door and the only route to a shared living room; shoes, parcels, and visitors gather in the same strip.
Keep the door swing and a straight passage clear on the plan. Move shoe storage to the side wall and give parcels a shallow landing shelf outside the passage.
How to test it
Ask someone unfamiliar with the plan to walk through a normal visit and point out where they would hesitate.
Apply it to this space
- Layout
- Place ordering first and pickup farther along the counter, with a queue lane that does not cross the entrance.
- Detail
- Make the menu legible from the queue and use a durable counter edge that tolerates bags and trays.
- Trade-off
- A longer counter clarifies stages but reduces room for seating.
- Simulate ordering and pickup at a busy moment
- Check menu readability from the back of the queue
The Elixir portfolio
Details worth a closer look
