A copper facade frames the grey stone interior of this dining and retail space in Shanghai designed by local firm Office Coastline.

Located on the first floor of a commercial complex on Madang Road in downtown Shanghai, the 198-square-metre venue belongs to lifestyle brand Genshang and combines a shop, tea bar, dining area and lounge room.

"The client wished to have a place for slow life to contrast with the daily fast-paced life," said Office Coastline , which was founded by Chinese architects Zhenyu Yang and Zhenyan Wu alongside Japanese architect Akihito Matsushita, who led the project.

"We approached the project by making a gentle sequence of spaces, from the entrance shop, long tea bar, dining area to the lounge room at the end."

The restaurant's generous glazed facade is framed by copper panels that contrast with the shopping centre's grey stone walls and concourse. The entrance door is recessed to the side, which the architects said was in order to "welcome guests gently" into the shop.

Customers enter the space through the tea bar and restaurant. A timber and grey stone-clad bar lined with leather stools and backed by a fluted concrete panel sits nearest to the entrance.

Copper pipe lights hang over the counter and a long backlit copper shelf stretches across the back panel.

The bar, which has a half-vaulted ceiling above, serves Chinese tea in the daytime and cocktails at night.

Custom-designed tables and chairs are spread across the centre of the space below an 4.8-metre-high exposed ceiling, and are overlooked by the kitchen service counter. An enclosed dining area hidden behind folding cane and reeded glass screens sits on the far side.

The main seating area features both square and circular tables set with wood, leather and cane armchairs. To save space, the cane-backed chairs that are set at the circular tables have curved backs that sit flush with the table top when pushed in.

The bar and dining area leads to a small shop with a minimal display of home accessories and clothing. A set of translucent coppery-pink fabric blinds shield the shop space from the cafe.

A lounge area with a vaulted ceiling sits at the rear of the space and is accessed through a set of folding screen doors set with panels of reeded glass and cane.

The dining area, which is used for activities such as meetings, events and private parties, benefits from a wall of floor-to-ceiling windows that overlook the street below.

A long bank of seating with cane armrests and tan leather upholstery spans the wall opposite the windows. The walls are clad in fluted concrete panels inset with three copper mirror panels.

Elsewhere in the city, Chinese studio Neri&Hu has designed the interior of Chi-Q restaurant, which features a long communal table and a dramatic light-filled atrium.

Photography is by Alessandro Wang.

Project credits:

Architects firm: Office Coastline
Lead architect: Akihito Matsushita
Other participants: Yang Zhenyu, Wu Zhenyan, Zhou Benyang