Description:

Coming back to a community that they left some 15 years ago was a large part of why the owners of this coffee shop wanted to create an intimate space that was warm, humble, and inviting - where all are welcome.

Everyday Coffee is founded on the principles of whānau or aiga, and influenced by spaces we love being in, such as growing up hanging out as a family at nana and grandpas – the typical meeting place and hub for our greater family. Their homes are adorned with unique and quirky touches, like vibrant yellow mortar in the brickwork, faux timber lining in their sitting rooms, and the very familiar faux flower ‘ula’ or necklaces draped over family photos. These are the spaces where cherished moments were shared among family and friends. In Everyday, the space seeks to recreate that same feeling, celebrating resourcefulness, laughter and inclusion.

Situated in Central Auckland, this small space serves as a symbolic homecoming for families who have moved away from the inner-city suburbs of Ponsonby, Grey Lynn, Kingsland, and Morningside. We wanted to create a space that embraces our people, offering them a sanctuary where they feel genuinely welcomed and never out of place.
The project was a labour of love with family being involved throughout, all the while using a ‘cost-effective’ and sustainable mindset. Such an approach allows for the materials to ‘do the talking’ and steer away from complex construction details, the simplicity of how the space is put together is what does the work. Native Matai and Rimu timber, for instance, were obtained from a nearby salvage yard that rescued these precious boards from local villas and a school hall. The tiles (that were on the ‘clearance shelf’), with their texture and burgundy colour, are a nod to some of the quirky colour selections that Nana and Grandpa made over the years. The DIY concrete benchtop poured in situ, by the owners and their uncle, anchors the space and centres the team in the middle of the shop deliberately so that there is a connection between those making the coffee/bagels and their patrons.

Everyday is a humble, warm, simple, and soulful space that is all about the music, laughter and banter exchanged between its local people that can call this place a ‘home away from home’ every morning.