This terracotta-tiled roastery and cafe serve coffee under the lofty wooden beams of what was once a busy thoroughfare in Seoul’s Yongsan District.

Local practice Studio stof designed the Seoul coffee shop, which inhabits a long, narrow space that was once a railway office in the 1940s and a connecting route between two streets in the neighbourhood.

The cafe’s owner named PONT for its distinctive footprint, which is emphasised by long counters and shelves. They draw the eye down the length of the space while encouraging customers to move through the store.

Studio stof’s choice of material also speaks to the building’s history and adaptive reuse, focusing on bricks, metal and wood as surfaces that would have previously been used in its construction. Guests can take their coffee away or perch awhile on slatted wooden stools in a sunny corner of the cafe.

19-16 Hangang-daero 15-gil, Hangangno, 04379 Seoul

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