Marina del Rey has welcomed Noun, a 1,500-square-foot café and lounge designed by Los Angeles- and New York-based studio Warkentin Associates.
Flexible zones for the new LA coffee shop
Rather than a singular layout, Noun is organized into a series of flexible zones that support different uses throughout the day.
Upon entry, guests encounter two primary seating areas that read more like a residential lounge than a traditional café. Anchored by layered area rugs—one wool, one natural sisal—each zone is furnished with an eclectic mix of vintage, found, and classic design pieces.
These lounge areas give way to a custom blue-lacquered communal table. Overhead, a pendant fixture defines the zone without visually enclosing it. Elsewhere, two-top tables offer intimate seating for one-on-one conversations or solo visits.
Outdoors, a patio extends the café’s footprint with clusters of tables and chairs surrounded by potted tropical plants.
High-low contrast at NOUN
Material contrasts play a central role in the design with high-low juxtapositions throughout the space. A 1970s smoked-glass-and-chrome coffee table sits alongside vintage Italian postmodern chairs from the ’90s, while a luxe leather sofa is offset by side tables created with standard concrete pavers sourced from a home improvement store. Meanwhile, painters’ drop cloths were used as window treatments in lieu of traditional drapery fabric.
Wood totems used for retail display nod to designers like Ettore Sottsass, while architectural finishes introduce an industrial edge. The café bar is clad in standard builder’s brick paired with heavy-gauge stainless steel, and the shared bathroom vanity features painted stripes inspired by Mario Botta, along with a stainless steel portal accented by custom linear lighting.
“Our process always draws upon a diverse array of references and influences,” says Warkentin Associates principal Nathan Warkentin. “With Noun, we loved the idea of celebrating the beauty of the mismatched, and were inspired by the warmth of ’90s coffee shops, the irreverence of postmodernism, and the personal charm of an artist’s living room.”
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