PROJECTS
Opened in July 2017, Aura Café was developed in tandem with the Signature Lux Hotels Sandton branch.
Cool, urban café
champions timber
Opening a café or restaurant in hotel premises is what many forward
thinking and trendy hotels do to offer convenience to their guests
– Aura Café in Sandton is no exception.
By Ntsako Khosa | Photos by C+B Architects
S
ituated at the Signature Lux Hotel, Aura Café is the
product of Cottle & Bergh Architects (C+B) that was
tasked with making the venue a standalone brand to
also attract foot traffic from the street.
The coffee café contracted C+B to design its interior
dining and exterior areas. Frans Bergh, founding partner of
C+B, says that the interior must be inviting, cosy yet
contemporary, durable and memorable.
“The client was looking for the best result on a limited
budget,” he says. In meeting the interior designer, they
sought to reflect the modern offering of the hotel and blend
it with a warm, inviting interior inspired by the latest design
seen in similar cafés overseas.
“We drew our inspiration from the modern functionality
of the hotel itself, the efficiency of pedestrian traffic seen
in New York City and the level of elegance and emphasis on
coffee as a product and the theatre of the baristas seen in
Vienna,” he explains.
The scope of work they carried out included planning
sketch designs, providing 3D presentations, construction
drawing, design of all shop fitting elements, specifying
26 APRIL / MAY 2018 //
complimentary furniture, application of the logo, menu
boards and finishes.
THE FINER DETAILS
Signature Lux Hotel was still under construction when C+B
started.
“Being involved from the initial stages was important
because the hotel was being developed in what used to be
an office building. Aura Café’s location is in what used to be
the basement of the old building,” he explains.
Given the proximity to Sandton City, they hoped to
achieve a space that could compete with the offerings
within the mall, such as the pick-up points for taxis.
“We tried to soften the boundary between the storefront
and the street by adding external seating and a ‘grab-n-go’
offering for tourists and locals,” Bergh says.
To achieve this, they used solid, locally-sourced timber.
The timber features detailed imperfections and a rich,
varied grain that makes each piece used unique. “Timber
has a rich, natural and crafted feel, which speaks to what we
envisage the brand to be. Warm, cosy and familiar,” he says.