THE EDIT:
Ten Listening Bars Where the Interior Matters as Much as the Sound
Stainless steel, concrete, burnt cork and walnut. Ten cafés, bars and restaurants from Mexico City to Berlin.
The listening bar traces much of its lineage to Japan's postwar jazz kissa, where audio equipment was treated as part of the architecture rather than something to be hidden. Across the ten spaces here, that thinking appears in different forms: joinery built around speakers, ceilings treated for absorption, and bars that double as cabinets.
JAÇ HI-FI CAFÉ, BARCELONA
Isern Serra Studio worked across 95 square metres on Avinguda Diagonal, with warm beige microcement running across floors, walls and ceilings as a single background for walnut and stainless steel. The bar, built by Fusteria Vidal from walnut, holds vinyl storage, a pastry display and custom Bloom Island speakers. A large stainless steel communal table sits at the centre of the room, while stainless steel Bloom Island speakers anchor the rear listening alcove, set against a walnut installation that folds up from the wall and curves into the ceiling. The iroko façade carries four circular indents that refer to speaker cones.
Photography by Salva Lopez
TRADER HIFI, HAMBURG
Vincent von Thien designed his own 70-square-metre café in Ottensen, removing the existing partitions for an open plan arranged around the sound system and a central bar. The bar is raw concrete, paired with a chrome Modbar, while a cork-clad DJ booth anchors the listening area. Burnt cork lines the ceiling, developed with Antwerp-based Studio Corkinho as part of the acoustic treatment, while heavy curtains soften both sound and light. The furniture comes from Lisbon studio Further THER, and the sound system was developed with H.A.N.D. HiFi in Berlin.
Photography by Clemens Poloczek
ANIMA, BERLIN
On the ground floor of the Locke hotel at the East Side Gallery in Friedrichshain, a café that shifts into a listening bar and restaurant as the day goes on. The interior is by Grzywinski+Pons, who designed the hotel throughout . A pink-tiled bar sits below shelves of records, with the furniture kept in pastel tones. The sound system was built by H.A.N.D. HiFi in Berlin, the speakers by Sound Metaphors, the mixer by Resør.
Photography by Nicholas Worley
CASA MÚSICA, MADRID
Designed by Estudio DIIR, Casa Música is a 120-square-metre space in Madrid where architecture is shaped around the experience of sound. Stacked concrete blocks form the bars and built-in seating, complemented by dark wood, stone and steel details. Sprayed cellulose gives the ceilings their rough, cave-like texture. The two levels serve different purposes: a restaurant at street level and a dedicated listening space below, where music takes centre stage. The sound system comes from Perujo Audio.
Photography by Simone Marcolin
MOGO, MILAN
Giorgia Longoni Studio took 400 square metres on the ground floor of a former brewery in Isola and set a 360-degree bar at the centre. The ceiling is a grid of illuminated panels that shifts from bright to amber across the day. Wood lines the shelving, tables and seating, in browns, beiges and pastel greens against polished steel, with terracotta upholstery and pale blue-green floors. The DJ booth is clad in brown wood, with subwoofers built into the shelving and satellites spread through the room, all made to order by H.A.N.D. HiFi. Tapestries by Italian-South African artist Andrea Marco Corvino hang across the space.
Photography by Vittorio La Fata
BOABOA RECORDS CAFÉ, BRUSSELS
Designed by ARTEFICE, BoaBoa Records Café in Uccle brings architecture and sound together through a carefully considered interior. Walnut wall panels feature acoustic perforations at ear level, designed to absorb and diffuse sound. A continuous counter runs from the entrance to the kitchen, while stainless steel details and a suspended ceiling mesh introduce a restrained industrial character. Acoustics were developed by Kahle Acoustics, with a bespoke sound system by H.A.N.D. HiFi in Berlin.
Photography by Tijs Vervecken
FLAT HIFI, MADRID
Designed by Madrid-based architecture studio DIIR, FLAT HIFI draws inspiration from Japanese jazz kissas, placing the act of listening at the centre of the spatial experience. Spread across two levels, the interior moves between the more dynamic atmosphere of the main floor and the intimacy of the basement. Wood, steel and textured surfaces establish a consistent material language, while bespoke elements integrate the bars and sound systems into the architecture itself. Carefully considered lighting brings depth to the materials, creating a setting where music, design and social interaction come together.
Photography by David Zarzoso
OUR SAKE CLUB, BERLIN
A sake bar and shop on Reichenberger Straße in Kreuzberg, founded by Richie Hawtin and Laura Käding-Hawtin. Hawtin is a techno musician and DJ who came to sake while touring Japan in the early nineties and trained as a sommelier in 2007. The former Späti was rebuilt from scratch with Berlin architects Abcarius Burns, carving out a basement for a walk-in cooling cell. A long German ash communal table runs through the centre. The custom sound system was developed with Johannes Kraemer, Hawtin's longtime touring sound engineer.
Photography by Clemens Poloczek
CUPIDO CAFÉ, MEXICO CITY
Designed by Formant Studio, Cupido Café brings coffee and music together in a space that combines brutalism, retro-futurism and 1970s influences. A monolithic metal coffee bar integrates an architectural sound system, making acoustics central to the design. Metal furniture, warm lighting and a neutral stone floor create a contrast between industrial materials and understated forms.
Photography by Fabián Martínez
WATCHHOUSE BOROUGH, LONDON
Designed by CAKE Architecture, WatchHouse Borough brings together specialty coffee and sound across two floors near London Bridge. While the ground floor features a stainless-steel espresso bar wrapped in dark blue quarry tiles, the lower level takes the form of an intimate listening room. Dusty red walls, matching banquette seating, minimalist sconces and an immersive sound system create a warm, atmospheric setting for longer stays and slower conversations.
Photography by Felix Speller
Five of these ten run systems built in Berlin. H.A.N.D. HiFi supplied Trader, MOGO, Anima, FLAT and Boaboa.
Anima and Our Sake Club are in the Guide by VISUALPLEASURE: Berlin.
Discover more places like these in the VISUALPLEASURE Berlin City Guide.
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