JAZZMINE, designed by nnm+ architects, was founded by Zeyu Shen, a young French dessert chef with an overseas background, who is not only passionate about French desserts but also has a deep love for jazz music. After several in-depth discussions, we decided to make the store a warm and dark-toned place, with a romantic retro jazzy atmosphere, letting time slowly flow here.
When naming the place, Zeyu was inspired by one of her favorite jazz records, Jasmine by Keith Jarrett and Charlie Haden, and “Jas” sounds similar to jazz, so “JAZZMINE” naturally became the name.
As requested, the façade looks inconspicuous at first glance in the bustling street, with mottled black steel plates, timber, and acrylic lightbox. The warm light in the darkened interior turns the windows into a show-box, and through the white gauze curtains, people can see the owner’s jazz-themed collection in the guest area as well as the main attraction of the store – the dessert cabinet at the corner of the bar.
The store is a compact space of only 30 square meters, and every inch of the layout of floor plan and elevation has gone through many rounds of careful deliberation and on-site adjustments, in the meantime retaining a sense of elegance and relaxation while keeping the efficiency.
Because of the rigorous dessert production process and hygiene requirements, the kitchen, laminating room, dressing room, secondary dressing room, and other spaces take up half of the store, the layout was discussed and changed many times at the beginning of the design, which can be said is “tailored” for the owner, so that the flow of production is smooth and at the same time, space is saved as much as possible.
The front area accommodates an intensive mini bar and two tables for dine-in customers. The wall of the guest area is filled with the owner’s collection of vinyl records and jazz-themed micro-exhibitions, which introduce plenty of fascinating stories. A black frosted metal strip provides a slight separation between the walnut siding and the record racks, displaying photos and postcards from all over the world, and showing the owner’s beautiful memories of her jazz cultural journeys.
The transparent glass of the production room is not just a partition, but also a unique window that shows the whole production process. Guests can see the owner making each dessert with skill and concentration, and the process is also a part of the tasting. The open kitchen makes guests feel the authenticity of the production while enjoying the food.
Almost all of the hardcover materials used in the store are handmade products, including liquid metallic art paint, cement art paint, handmade tiles, and old walnut veneer. The non-standardized handmade materials add vivid layers and textures to the space, giving it a film-like artistic feeling.
Zeyu advocates a sustainable lifestyle of reusing old things. All by herself, she has turned old vinyl records and musical instruments into three different types of lights for the guest area and the bar area. Old stuffs imprinted with the traces of time not only bring a unique sense of warmth and intimacy but also complements the overall jazz atmosphere of the place.
Zeyu hopes that every guest will find their own piece of silence and peace in this warm, dark-toned environment, and as she says, “If there is a color to describe jazz, it must be the color of the night.”
