Design Details: From Dumpsters to Wilderness Chic at L.A.’s Cafecito Organico

We need to do something with that awkward outdoor space

It’s a thought often uttered by coffee retailers, especially those who rely on high customer volumes with limited indoor seating space. In cases where the awkward outdoor space is street-facing, we’ve seen numerous coffee shops work with local municipalities to create a public parklet.

But in the case of L.A. roaster/retailer Cafecito Organico, the awkward space was in behind Hoover St. bar, used for trash receptacles and various other unsightly items kept out of the public’s eye. So the Cafecito team enlisted the help of John Sofio and Sormeh Azad of the L.A. design/build firm Built Inc. to transform the space into something usable that reflects the coffee company’s spirit and can also help the bottom line.

Build Inc. played off Cafecito’s sustainability-minded mission to create the Hoover Wilderness space, including repurposed lumber from an Ohio barn for walls, sections of a Tijuana gymnasium floor for tables, sheet metal from a West Virgina Amish farmer for canopies, and sections of timber from a Los Angeles pier for additional tables. Cafecito and Build filled out the space with an outdoor fireplace, weather-resistant upholstered seating and abuntant plants and greenery.