Harudot by IDIN Architects: Café Architecture

At Best Café Designs, we are pleased to spotlight Harudot by IDIN Architects—an outstanding café and roastery designed for Nana Coffee Roasters in Chon Buri, Thailand. In 2024, this project earned widespread acclaim, notably securing The Social Space award at the INDE.Awards, cementing its place as one of the most impactful café designs of the year.

Harudot demonstrates how café architecture can transcend commercial intent to deliver deeply contextual, culturally responsive, and socially enriching spaces. As a platform that celebrates the best in café design globally, we are proud to have featured Harudot and to see its work receive such meaningful international recognition.

Landscape and Ritual

Harudot draws its name from the Japanese words Haru (spring) and Dot (starting point)—symbolising renewal and origin. This ethos is reflected architecturally through a composition of three gable-roofed volumes nestled within a lush tropical setting. Each volume is clad in timber and designed to echo the natural surroundings, with meticulous detailing that bridges interior and exterior experiences.

IDIN Architects’ approach emphasises:

Integration with nature – The building is embedded into a sloping site with minimal disruption, fostering a sense of immersion in the landscape.
Cultural storytelling – The spatial layout references local narratives and seasonal cycles, enhancing emotional engagement.
Crafted materiality – The use of oxidised steel, stone, and textured concrete adds depth and tactility to the experience.

A Look Back at 2024: Harudot’s Award Trail

Harudot’s success at the 2024 INDE.Awards was just one of several accolades that year, reflecting the project’s consistent excellence across multiple design criteria. Its honours include:

INDE.Awards – The Social Space Winner
Architizer A+ Awards – Jury and Popular Winner
Golden Pin Design Award – Best Spatial Design
GOOD Design Award (Japan) – Winner
Frame Awards – Winner of the Month (January 2024)
Asia Pacific Property Awards – Leisure Architecture (Thailand)

These recognitions underscore Harudot’s capacity to merge storytelling, sustainability, and social engagement—hallmarks of meaningful café design.

Tracking Recognition: Architecture Awards Tracker – A Strategic Tool for the Design Community

As platforms like ours continue to showcase exemplary café projects, we recognise the importance of tools that support strategic visibility in the architecture profession. That’s why we also highlight the value of ArchitectureAwardsTracker.com—a practical resource for studios looking to identify relevant award opportunities across the globe.

Unlike speculative directories, Architecture Awards Tracker offers:

A clear and updated list of active and past awards across architecture and interior design.
Filters by category, location, deadline, and eligibility, making it easier to navigate opportunities.
A focus on transparency and efficiency, supporting studios in planning their submissions with confidence.

It’s a tool we recommend for practices aiming to document and amplify their design outcomes, including in the café and hospitality sectors.

Conclusion: Celebrating and Supporting Café Design Excellence

At Best Café Designs, we are proud to feature projects like Harudot that reflect not just aesthetic sophistication, but a deep commitment to place, narrative, and social value. These are the kinds of projects that inspire our community and elevate café architecture to a broader cultural platform.

We look forward to continuing to showcase design excellence—and to supporting architects in gaining the global recognition their work deserves. With tools like Architecture Awards Tracker and an engaged design community, we are better equipped to celebrate projects that move beyond the everyday, offering insight, reflection, and delight in equal measure.