Seven Seeds by Breathe Architecture

The recipe behind Seven Seeds seems quite simple. Take an existing inner city warehouse and transform it into a roastery and café facility that’s as ecologically sustainable as possible. Reuse existing materials here, add some water tanks there and a greenhouse somewhere in the middle and, voila! But one has only to walk through the café’s warm, modestly rendered entrance, into a treasure trove of finely executed ideas to see that Seven Seeds is all this, and much more.

With the backdrop of buzzing inner city Carlton, Victoria, clients Mark Dundon and Bridget Amor – Melbourne’s coffee royalty – wanted a place to work, grow, test and roast their coffee, whilst practising and preaching ideas of sustainability within an engaging urban space. To answer this, the dynamic team behind Breathe Architecture approached the brief holistically, ensuring their final architectural solution would be as much about sustainability as it was about experience, aesthetics, urbanism and culture.

The café consists of three interlocking spaces carefully divided by plywood and steel windows to maintain natural lighting and cooling as well as a visual connection between the different spaces. The main volume contains an open plan kitchen and café which surrounds a central laboratory and hydroponic garden that is linked to a packing and roasting area. Washrooms are located alongside the roastery and on the shaded South end, the stable temperatures crucial to green bean storage is harnessed into insulated storage.

In response to the existing warehouse, Breathe Architecture placed an emphasis on drawing from the original textural and thermal qualities of the site to develop resourceful and unique interiors. The warehouse’s exposed brickwork, timber trusses and assortment of floor slabs were retained and additional materials only minimally added to provide a striking juxtaposition between textures that is all the while an economic source of thermal mass. The bare plywood walls are a wonderfully warm and smooth contrast to the rugged brickwork and aging timber structure which appears as an infused palette of the old and new.

Amidst the textural richness of the café is an in-depth exploration of ideas on sustainability, embedded into principles of human connection and communication. The open kitchen, with its fresh aromas spreads easily into the generous communal spaces that are naturally ventilated through carefully placed openings. Mechanical ventilation is irrelevant when low and high openings across the café allow for natural convection currents to provide comfortable, power-free ventilation. Bike racks which hang internally, opposite the kitchen and central garden, are a civic addition designated for the visiting commuter. Part example of sustainable transport, part artistic installation, this feature provides a real sense of liveliness and social connection within the café’s vibrant interiors.

Between the roastery and washroom area is a curious display: a 10,000-litre rainwater tank is used as a partition that is alive with water constantly flowing in and out of it. The tanks conveniently supply water to adjacent toilets, temper temperature spikes produced by the roasters and create a showcase of sustainability in practice. In a similar move to the bike racks, the placement of the catchment is a clever exploration of human engagement with otherwise utilitarian features.

The central hydroponic garden and laboratory is Mark Dundon and Bridget Amor’s idea about displaying a transparent relationship between farm and cup in practice. The garden courtyard and laboratory welcomes light from an open roof, encouraging curious eyes to wander through the coffee farm with the roastery and packaging room beyond. Through this, patrons are given the satisfaction of drinking coffee grown and roasted before their eyes and are welcomed to be a part of the process. Under these layers of engaging and enjoyable education, the courtyard’s operable windows function as a natural evaporative cooling system, simply cooling air before it enters the café.

As a popular destination for workers and locals, it’s easy to assume that Seven Seeds is simply a café that serves great coffee. But alongside this, Seven Seeds is a place to enjoy the company of friends with the magic of sustainability in practice and display, in what is altogether a unique urban space. +

PHOTOGRAPHY Andrew Wuttke

1. The brick walls, timber trusses and concrete slabs are all features kept and enhanced from the original warehouse, reusing the old for the new. 2. With seating arrangements both large and small surrounding the central hydroponic garden and lab, visitors are offered an engaging communal space. 3. Public bike racks reinforce sustainable practice whilst providing an artistic installation that openly invites and engages visitors. 4. A combination of old and new fittings and textures scale down the former warehouse to a pleasant urban space. 5. The understated façade is a warm and modest entrance with finely detailed leaves painted by the enthusiastic clients.