Winner: Small interior of the year 2025. Open Edge Office has designed the interiors of Dark Hill, a coffee shop in Beijing, China.
In Beijing's hutongs, Dark Hill's shadowy interior showcases exceptional coffee beans, where customers' senses awaken through layered darkness, echoing traditional Eastern spatial poetry.

As a novel concept in Beijing, Dark Hill transforms coffee selection into a sensory evaluation – in the tasting process, customers observe the slow drips of coffee, listen to the rhythmic percussion of brewing and breathe in the evolving aroma as flavours intensify.

"Our spatial concept embraces 'darkness'—inspired by Jun'ichirō Tanizaki's In Praise of Shadows," said Open Edge Office.

"Like Eastern aesthetics that reveal beauty through subtlety, dimness here heightens the senses, turning each visit into a contemplative encounter with light, shadow and flavour."

The design maximises spatial efficiency through meticulous detailing. The custom tasting bar features dual-height levels – optimised for staff demonstrations and customer observation – with an inclined edge for comfortable leaning.

In addition, adjustable shelves behind the bar transform product presentation into an integral part of the coffee experience.

Studio: Open Edge Office
Project: Dark Hill
Credits: Simon Lee, Wang Yue and Han Shukai