MANNATEE Cafe
Project Information:
Timeline
Project Type
Team
Role
Site
Programs
11.2022 ~ 12.2022
Interior Design, Spatial UX
Collin Carder, Kyra Kozin, Nayeon Kwon, Hayoung Shin, Nina Yang
Research, Diagrams, Modeling and Rendering
Ithaca, New York
Revit, Sketchup, Enscape, Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign
Our client, Cornell Dining, wanted to transform the current design of the Cafe in the Mann Library to a space where more students will be attracted to and spend more time. We weaved the MANNatee brand concept throughout our space, and highlighted artworks from Glyphe, a local artist we found inspiration from when creating our design. Our challenge was to transform the space to have effective circulation for staffs and customer, distinct separation among buying, waiting, sitting spaces, and welcoming atmophere that creates a unique and comfortable space.
[Site Analysis]
Nearby Dining Options and Cafe
Martha’s Cafe serves the same coffee as the current space, yet has healthier menu options, such as make-your-own salad bowl options.
Trillium has a high diversity of options with five different food stations (Mexican food, Asian food, Salad stations, Pasta Station, and Burger Station) along with grab-and-go soup, wrap, or sushi and drink stations as well.
Bus stop bagels competes with the other options with its unique bagel benu and the advantage of offering Starbucks coffee on their drink menu.
[Spatial Analysis and User Experience]
Current Status Quo
Journey Map (heat map)
Based on our observations, the circulation path for customers are very confusing and chaotic in peak hours.
There is a central island which has two cashiers. The size of the island is 73 ⅛” x 86” x 36 ¼”. On both sides of the counter are coolers and shelves for grab and go snacks. On the right side of the counter, there is a coffee stand where people can get milk in their coffee. Behind the counter is the waiting area for pick ups and the kitchen. Also there are 27 seatings in this space. Due to COVID, social distancing is in action.
One on side of the cafe, there are coolers for burritos, and drinks and a cookie stand. On the other side, there is a cooler for bowls, and sushi. This creates an inefficient flow in the space because people are moving around the space to grab food from both sides of the cafe. Customers who are trying to get/ take a look at sushi or bowl and customers getting cookies inevitably intersect with customers who are waiting for their order. This flow is disrupted by the people in line to order. The line in the middle not only disrupts the flow of customers getting foods, but also the people who are sitting in the table.
Also, the menu is very far from the counter where customers order and pay. It is especially difficult to see from the end of the line. We spotted people who would use their phone camera to take a photo and zoom in to see the menu and some people walking all the way back of the cafe to look at the menu and come back.
[User Research]
STAFF
From our on-site staff interview with Tammy Bradley and observation of other staff working in the space, we concluded that primary staff needs consist of:
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Improved kitchen circulation
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Food and drink separation
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More preparation space
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Privacy from customers
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Increased storage.
CUSTOMERS
From our eight verbal student interviews, online customer survey with 26 participants, and observation of other customers in the space, we concluded that primary customer needs consist of:
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Improved café circulation
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Crowd control
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Defined wait spaces
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Visible menu
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Acoustic control
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Natural lighting.
[Design Strategy]
Proposed Floor Plan
in-store order customer
in-store order customer who dines in
mobile order pickup customer
This floor plan features an expanded kitchen, a streamlined ordering experience, consolidated pick up space, and improved seating options.
The kitchen space is expanded about 30% beyond its current placement, which allows staff increased movement and also creates space for a kitchen island, giving staff extra preparation counter space.
Within the ordering experience, highlighted in yellow, customers can pick up items from grab & go on their way to the ordering counter. The pick up space, highlighted in blue, is consolidated, improving both staff and customer circulation. The seating space, highlighted in pink, features individual, pair, and small group seating, to cater to the different sizes of customer groupings.
The expected journey map of mobile order, and in-store order customers in our proposed floor plan shows the improved efficiency and circulation of the space.
[Handout]
The handout includes more information of user research data, reflected ceiling plan, FF&E and branding.
This was provided to our client, Cornell dining during our proposal presentation.
[Renderings]
[Walkthrough Video]
