WERE YOU BORN IN A TENT

Tuesday 16 December 2014

FORM CAFE

32 Albion St, Essendon

Visited: 3rd December 2014

Design: At last a white door. Like a piece of modern art, the entrance to Form creates a space of contemplation. White and minimal, revealing very little of the interior on entry, one can only hope for the same once inside. Upon entering I am relieved to find a sensitivity and calmness to the design.
I thought the design of the little enclave near the door with stools to sit, was the ultimate for a door reviewer to ponder and admire a work of beauty. A small bench seat clad in natural timber to the left breaks the cube of white giving the space a warmth and a touch of personality. The white 8ft high door towers over you as you enter, which I found made the small front entrance feel larger as the eye is guided to the roof by the extended vertical. Ahhh! a handmade handle, so rare these days. The dark grey of the welded steel, (a simple right angle of two panels) is replicated in the planter box behind the door upon opening and also used on the internal stairs inside the cafe. The door had a quick close, a comforting squeak and an unusual thud on the close that made me think of a carpet store door in Morocco I visited once. Strange!

Door resistance: 3.5

Closure mechanism: Hydraulic arm

Draft: Minimal

Squeak level: 2

Change return time: 25 sec

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PROFESSIONAL DOOR REVIEWER

Searching the world for the perfect door to eat behind.

First impressions are always important, especially for a restaurant or cafe. So many people are focusing on the food these days that I felt there was a hole in the reviews world. No one was looking at the most important thing, THE DOOR! Everyone complains when it is left open, death stares are exchange when the unsuspecting group of friends having a fun night enter the premises from the cold only to walk straight in and go straight to their table totally oblivious they have left the door wide open to allow an arctic strength gale force wind to cut through the previously warm interior. Like a scene from a western film where everyone in the premises stops what they are doing and cuts down the new comers with a deathly stare. Occasionally you will get the confident diner who gets up, walks across the restaurant and closes the door with a BANG! Just to let the new comers know they have done wrong and to NEVER, EVER DO IT AGAIN!!!!! This individual makes their way back to the table staring at the newcomers, just to make sure they got the message. The only problem is, is that 5 minutes later another group come in and do the same thing and he/she feels obliged to continually do this for the rest of the night.

Well hopefully this blog puts a light on the owners of these establishments and encourages them to lift their game and create doors that allow diners to sit and enjoy their meal, to give the diner an experience before they enter the building. It is also a thank you to the makers of quality doors who care about craftsmanship.

I have developed a scoring system based on,

DESIGN:

This is assessed by the materials the door is made from, whether the door is themed, cluttered or minimal and whether there is an element of surprise or not.

DOOR RESISTANCE: 1 to 5

1 = light push

5 = heavy push

CLOSURE MECHANISM: Manual, automatic or

hydraulic arm

DRAFT: Minimal, medium or high

SQUEAK LEVEL: 0 up to 5

0 = No squeak

5 = Ear piercing

Then the last assessment is the,

CHANGE RETURN TIME:

This is the amount of time it takes to get my change once I have given the waiter the money for the bill. Last impressions are always just as important as first.