Moden, a new cafe-bakehouse in the vibrant Athens neighbourhood of Pangrati, is just what this residential street needed. Replacing a dusty and dated office in a quiet 1970s corner building, it provides a calm, clean space for the local community, with high ceilings and windows on two sides to maximise daylight.

Founded by pastry chef Pavlos Tsiolekas, the Athens cafe specialises in comforting European treats like chocolate babka, apple tarts and Nordic cinnamon buns with cardamom (Moden means ‘maturity’ in Danish). Tsiolekas enlisted architect Georgios Apostolopoulos to design the interior, and he responded with characteristic monochromatic minimalism.

The light oak and steel kitchen is a focal point, like an open stage where pastries are brought from the ovens and coffee is prepared — even the industrial espresso machine is white. Apostolopoulos designed tall metal stools for the wood eating bar at the front window and low benches with café tables around the perimeter. A sleek steel staircase leads to a tiny mezzanine lounge, cleverly using the void above the bathroom, enabled by those high ceilings. Mottled concrete floors recall the texture of flour in the making of dough.

At 40 sq m, the space is small but ample, orchestrated to encourage chance meetings and conversation, or simply a place to cool off.

Read next: Athens restaurant Gallina serves up contemporary design

Ace Hotel opens its Athens outpost inspired by the Golden Age of the Greek Riviera

This Athens hotel leans into its industrial history through its tactile interiors