
- Project Type: Recreational+Hospitality, Restaurant
- Designer: Proyecto cafeína + Komoni
- Location: Mexico, Ciudad de Cuetzalan
- Year: 2018
- Size: 200 sqm
- Photo Credits: Patrick Lopez
Tosepan Kajfen is a project of the Tosepan Titataniske Indigenous Cooperative, located in the Sierra Norte of the State of Puebla. The cooperative is made up of peasant families, who are dedicated to growing coffee, so the project was developed in conjunction with the community, through participatory design, which should meet different objectives with a limited budget.
One of the main objectives was to achieve a space of coexistence for the local community, which at the same time invited the visitor to know the worldview and the way of being a peasant of the Macehual people. Another objective was to consolidate the last link in the productive chain of the biodiverse coffee plantation, which includes the production of coffee, virgin honey, fruits and timber trees, promoting fair trade through cooperativism. With the first cafeteria in the Magic Town of Cuetzalan operating, it is intended to start a sustainable franchise model that is economically attractive to the peasant and thereby achieve the preservation of the region’s ecosystem through the plantation of biodiverse coffee plantations.
For the interior design, locally obtained materials related to the biodiverse coffee plantation were selected, so the use of odhamii bamboo predominates in walls and ceilings, which is part of the cooperative’s cultivation model. Oldhamii, being a natural material, encourages the use of local artisans, and at the same time allows a great diversity of textures, which can be seen in the ironing and braiding on walls, woven in stretch marks on lintels and the reticulated ends on suspended frames as ceiling lights.
Another basic ingredient of the biodiverse coffee plantation is the cultivation of melipona honey in clay pots, using a technique used in an ancestral way. Consequently, lamps were designed using these same clay pots, as a remembrance that seeks to recover the elemental value of nature in the life of the project, distributing and illuminating the different areas of the building.
The project seeks to rescue the historical legacy of the site, since it is located in a space called “Big Machine”, where coffee was collected, dried and roasted for sale; Therefore, part of the machinery used for this purpose is preserved inside, which can be observed from any point. Additionally, an interior patio was designed where part of the Biodiverse Coffee Plantation vegetation is reproduced, offering an educational experience and contact with nature.
Additionally, the Tosepan cooperative seeks to be respectful with the environment, for this reason, a rainwater collection and use system was installed, as well as the treatment of gray and soapy water through filters and biodigesters.
The location allows possibilities for growth in a second phase, in which it is intended to promote the culture of the Masehual People through dances, gastronomic samples and handicrafts exhibition. We are confident in the success of the initiative, so that it will soon grow and allow the generation of better opportunities for the community.