Botanicafé is a healthy restaurant with a specialty coffee bar located in the Retiro district of Buenos Aires, Argentina.
The project was developed around several key concepts:
BIOPHILIA – OASIS – THRESHOLD – PLANT – SUN – WATER – SUSTAINABLE – LEARNING – IMPACT – SILENCE – MUTABLE – TACTILITY – TEXTURES – TIMELESS – NATURAL PATTERNS – PATH – TOPOGRAPHY – VERTICALITY – LIGHT – SHADOW
The first design operation was the creation of a green band that stitches together the entire productive area, wrapping the kitchen, bathroom, and mezzanine. This band pulls away from the existing perimeter, generating a service zone and acting as a backdrop for the specialty coffee area.
A second operation introduced a topography emerging from the floor, which defines the sitting areas and the main bar.
The landscape design, developed by Juan Micelli, integrates with the green band and the sitting zones to create an interior garden. Vegetation grows along the circulation paths, levels, and spatial situations, reinforcing the idea of a continuous landscape.
STUDIO PRINCIPLES
COLOR TO PERCEIVE
Color operates through hierarchy and texture. The green band acts as a canvas on which different accents guide the user through the space.
FLEXIBILITY TO CREATE
The green band consolidates all service areas and frees the dining room. Fixed sittings rise from the terrazzo floor, allowing the layout to adapt to daily operation.
FUNCTIONALITY TO RESOLVE
The project organizes service areas from a single, accessible point, generating clear paths—like garden trails—that structure the restaurant’s entire operation.
PREEXISTENCE TO LEARN FROM
The existing columns are revalued rather than hidden. They become anchors for curves, terrazzo seating, passages of the green band, and planters that respect their morphology.
SUSTAINABILITY TO LIVE BY
We sought to balance the environmental impact typical of commercial and gastronomic spaces by working with artisans and using forested woods, terrazzo, and cellulose spray finishes. Tables and benches were made from forested phenolic wood, prioritizing durability and responsible material use.
MATERIALIZING THE IDEAS
We designed a custom terrazzo, developed through an artisanal process in which each composition is unique.
The floor was conceived as a series of water mirrors, working with the idea of droplets, puddles, and natural lagoons. This fluid logic structures the interior topography.
For the bathroom, we created a custom pattern based on a collage of native plants. It was materialized in hand-made tiles that evoke a small interior garden.
A key aspect of the project was revalorizing traditional Argentine forested woods such as pine and eucalyptus. Through color and staining, we enhanced their natural grains—often rejected—turning them into contemporary and distinctive materials.
The tables, designed entirely by the studio, follow organic geometries and complete the project’s color palette, creating different spatial experiences through color and morphology. The communal table consists of three individual pieces that can be joined or separated according to operational needs.
Botanicafé is conceived as a natural oasis within Puerto Retiro, where nature emerges, transforms, and expands through the interior atmosphere, creating a landscape-like experience for users.