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Outbyte PC Repair FREERepair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsFix Now →Outbyte Driver Updater FREEFix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitchesFind Drivers →Levelstudio’s Collab Cafe & Concept Store brings café seating and curated retail into a 70 m² space in Almaty, Kazakhstan. Completed in 2026, the project adapts the ground floor and basement of an older Soviet-era residential building, using display, circulation and a tree-centered terrace to connect the two uses.
How does a café and concept store work in one small space?
Rather than separating retail into a conventional shop zone, Levelstudio places exhibitions within the dining area as curated displays. Some café seats sit beside the store counter, letting visitors encounter the displayed objects as part of the café environment. The architects describe the result as a permeable setting in which hospitality and retail function together, with an intimate, micro-museum quality.
Custom curved millwork helps shape circulation through the interior. The design therefore treats movement and display as part of the same layout, instead of relying on a hard boundary between café and shop.
How did Levelstudio adapt the existing Almaty building?
The project occupies the ground floor and basement of an old Soviet-era residential building. Monolithic metal panels with tight reveals conceal irregularities in the existing structure, while the project’s new fit-out gives the combined venue a distinct material identity.
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Brushed stainless-steel cladding and a backlit glass-block counter bring industrial finishes and a reference to Soviet modernist design. A coral-red solid-surface counter element adds contrast; light timber seating and indoor greenery soften the palette. Recessed LED channels and a luminous stretch-fabric ceiling above the bar contribute to the interior lighting scheme. The architects describe the ceiling light as uniform and glare-free, but the project feature provides no measured lighting results.
How does the terrace connect the venue to the street?
A summer terrace makes the transition from sidewalk to interior. Its tiered, curved wooden decking is arranged around an existing mature tree, integrating the tree into the outdoor seating area rather than treating it as an obstacle. Metallic service carts, green parasols and potted plants complete the outdoor lounge described by the architects.
Rank #2
What sustainability measures does the project describe?
The architects identify reuse of the existing residential envelope as the project’s principal sustainability strategy and say it reduces embodied carbon compared with new construction. They also cite recyclable steel and glass, planting, energy-efficient LED systems and maximized daylight as elements of their approach.
These are stated design strategies, not quantified performance findings. The ArchDaily feature publishes no lifecycle assessment, energy-use figures or embodied-carbon calculation for the project, so it does not establish the scale of any environmental benefit.
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Project details and source limits
| Detail | Published information |
|---|---|
| Project | Collab Cafe & Concept Store |
| Location | Almaty, Kazakhstan |
| Area and year | 70 m²; 2026, according to ArchDaily project metadata |
| Architects | Levelstudio; the feature lists Bekzat Amanzhol as lead architect and Anatoliy Popovich as lead architect and design-team member |
| Photography | Damir Otegen |
The project description is provided by the architects in ArchDaily’s project feature, published October 5, 2026. The feature does not establish the venue’s exact address, opening status, hours or menu, so those visitor details cannot be confirmed from the available project information.
Quick Recap
Best Value
- Binding: Hardcover
- Illustrations: 250 in color
- Pages: 296
- Dimensions: 9 x 12 in. (235 x 305 mm.)
- ISBN: 978-0865653948
Rank #4
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