Haute Couture x Haute Coffee

Since most fashionistas famously subsist on coffee, it seems like a no brainer that fashion cafés are the new “it” places to see and be seen.

No, we’re not talking about the ill-fated Fashion Cafe initially fronted by super models Naomi Campbell, Elle Macpherson, Claudia Schiffer, and Christy Turlington that the AP called the “couture version of Planet Hollywood and the Hard Rock Cafe.”

Though fashion brands in the restaurant game are nothing new, see: The Polo Bar, Tiffany’s Blue Box Café and the recently opened Armani/Ristorante, we’re seeing high end fashion houses dip their toes specifically in the café game.

And while brands like Ralph’s Coffee have expanded across the globe and the Coach Coffee Shop is living its best life in New Jersey, the opening of French luxury brand Printemps’ retail and restaurant outpost in New York and the rumored expansion of the Prada Caffé close behind, it seems the golden age of haute couture meets haute coffee is upon us.

If coffee and fashion get you buzzed, here are some hot spots you'll want to know about:

Printemps

The newly opened department store features an all-day café, Café Jalu, a champagne bar and a raw bar – as well as Maison Passerelle, an 85-seat fine-dining restaurant that comes with its own separate entrance on Broadway. Gregory Gourdet, Top Chef alum and James Beard Award winner, is overseeing the culinary program.

‍Café Dior

Opened in February at the brand’s Highland Park Village boutique in Dallas, TX, Café Dior by Dominique Crenn is a celebration of the artistry, elegance, and craftsmanship that defines Christian Dior. Perhaps best known for her Michelin starred San Francisco restaurant Atelier Crenn, Crenn was drawn to the project as a way to fuse her own philosophy and Dior’s timeless designs.

Prada Caffè

Opened in 2023 and set to run through February 2026, the Prada Caffè in London is set inside luxe department store Harrod’s in London. Inspired by Prada’s most famous stores – including its first-ever boutique, opened at Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II in 1913 – Prada Caffè features the brand’s iconic green on the walls, ceilings, and velvet-upholstered banquettes while the floors reproduce the black-and-white checkered floor of the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II. With rumors that Prada is planning to open its first U.S. café in New York City's Soho neighborhood, we're waiting with coffee cups in hand to see what's brewing.

Uniqlo Cafe

The popular Japanese retailer just opened its first North American location of Uniqlo Coffee inside its Midtown store in New York. Although only serving a simple menu of coffee and espresso drinks, the fashion retailer often dips into food-themed graphic T-shirts, such as ramen shops and Pocky according to TimeOut New York.  

Café Kitsuné

With cafes in fashion capitals including Paris, Tokyo and New York, Café Kitsuné is a specialty coffee retailer and cafe that blends the charm of small coffee bars with the stylish cool of fashion brand Maison Kitsuné. More recently, the brand introduced its first ready-to-wear accessories collection in a color palette inspired by Café Kitsuné’s emblematic drinks including Dark Coffee Brown, Cappuccino Mocha, Latte Beige, Coconut Milk White and Matcha Green.

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