CB2 Cafe and Venue

Originally an area of disused wasteland, owned by Cambridge City Council, the site fills the corner of Norfolk Street and the busy East Road, adjacent to the CB2 Restaurant. In response to the CB2’s vision and with input from the City Council we have created a dining area that it is hoped will function more as a public square than a private terrace.

The scheme, designed in collaboration with Lisa Camps, landscape designer, incorporates timber planters with full vegetation to create separation between diners and the street. New lamp posts and recessed lighting in the terrace steps enhance the nighttime ambience. The client intends to hold competitions on the human scale chessboard at the centre to further encourage public involvement.

A new service hatch has been formed in the wall of the restaurant. A shed in the corner of the site, in which to stores chairs, tables and umbrellas, should gradually be covered by climbing plants as part of the planting scheme.