Eat Drink Design Awards 2020 reveals Australia’s most beautiful cafés

The 2020 ​Eat Drink Design Awards shortlist has been announced, revealing the most exceptionally designed hospitality venues across Australia and New Zealand.

Award categories for 2020 include Best Café Design, Best Restaurant Design, Best Bar Design, Best Hotel Design, Best Installation Design, Best Retail Design, and Best Identity Design.

The Best Café Design shortlist includes:

The Garden Room – Maytree Studios Brisbane City, Queensland
Will and Co. – Alexander and Co. Bondi Beach, New South Wales
City Hill Coffee – Greater Group Canberra, Australian Capital Territory
Cafe Mckenzie – Brewer Architects Randwick, New South Wales
Sensory Lab Cafe (David Jones, Sydney) – Studio 11:11 (pictured) Sydney, New South Wales
Dopa by Devon – Tom Mark Henry Haymarket, New South Wales
Only Specialty Coffee, South Brisbane – Ma_JR Brisbane, Queensland
Part Time Lover – Sans-Arc Studio Adelaide, South Australia
Mr Frankie – Harrison Interiors Frankston South, Victoria
Laurent Kew – Golden Kew, Victoria
The Beach House, Geelong – Studio Esteta Geelong, Victoria
Carter Lovett – Megan Hounslow Elsternwick, Victoria
Billie Buoy – Biasol Studio Essendon, Victoria
Cafe La Fayette – Hassel Melbourne, Victoria
Meet Fresh – Wall Architects Glen Waverley, Victoria
BondStore – Proto-Tipo Southbank, Victoria
There Cafe – Ewert Leaf Footscray, Victoria
Nine Yards – Golden South Melbourne, Victoria
Axil Coffee Melbourne Central – St Style Melbourne, Victoria
Levi – Levi Murrumbeena, Victoria

This year’s Awards come at a critical time for the hospitality industry. Like many sectors suffering under lockdowns and economic downturn, our beloved cafés, restaurants, bars, clubs, and hotels are under extreme duress. The award organisers say it has never been more important to recognise the spaces that bring value and joy to everyday life.

The annual Eat Drink Design Awards recognise excellence and innovation in the design of restaurants, bars, cafés, hotels, nightclubs, temporary venues and retail spaces across Australia and New Zealand.

The awards highlight that an exceptional venue isn’t only defined by what is served on a plate; a truly exceptional venue incorporates innovative and thoughtful design that heightens the overall hospitality experience of patrons.

Eat Drink Design Awards jury chair and Editor of ​Artichoke​, Cassie Hansen, explains that one of the notable design stories that prevailed in this year’s shortlist was the sense of comfort and nostalgia permeating venue designs.

“Perhaps it is no coincidence that in a time of such upheaval, we have seen designers create spaces that provide familiarity in their appearance and comfort in their feel. Many designers appeared to be in search of an air of nostalgia for the interiors they create, with numerous venues showcasing a modern take on traditional spaces. This year’s designers have one foot in the past whilst firmly looking towards the future,” Cassie says.

In recognition of the longevity and cultural significance that a venue can hold, one long standing venue will also be inducted into the ​Eat Drink Design Awards Hall of Fame​. Past winners include the Cumulus Inc by Pascale Gomes-McNab, Cookie by Phillip Schemnitz Architect, Jimmy Watson’s Wine Bar by Robin Boyd and Frederick Romberg, Cafe Di Stasio by Allan Powell Architects, Fratelli Paradiso by Mike Murphy with later additions by Mike Hanna and Don Cameron, and Icebergs by Lazzarini Pickering.

The Eat Drink Design Awards are chosen by a jury of industry leaders from the hospitality and design sectors. This year’s members are ​Frank Camorra, restaurateur, Movida​; Gemima Cody, restaurant critic and food writer, Good Food; ​Iva Foschia, founder, IF Architecture; Jonathan Richards, co-founder, Richards Stanisich​; and ​Cassie Hansen​, editor, ​Artichoke​.

Winners of the Eat Drink Design Awards will be announced on 18 November.

For more information, visit ​eat-drink-design.com

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