Located in the lobby of the new Ace Hotel in Portland, Oregon, the Stumptown Cafe boasts artisan coffees brewed a cup at a time. The intent of this cafe is to give people a unique experience with coffee-encouraging customers to stand along the bar and enjoy a shot of espresso, or meander through the offerings of single-origin coffees available by the cup or pound.


The design of the interior and bar nod to the history of the original building (built in 1912), and simultaneously contrasts it with modern finishes and details. The face of the bar is tiled with more that 400 hand-made frames, and custom oak wainscoting runs the perimeter of the space, inset flush to the walls. Above the back-lit sign in the back-bar, a taxidermal rooster (Stumptown’s “mascot”) rests on an oscillating base, slowly moving back and forth about once an hour. The curved glass, built-in pastry case anchors the bar and features a custom lazy susan, and three clustered chandeliers and hand-blown coffee jars were made as a collaboration between Esque design and MADE.

Project details

* Project Name: Stumptown Cafe - Ace Hotel
* Client: Stumptown Coffee Roasters
* Project Type: Commercial
* Principal Designer/s: Bo Hagood
* Design Team: Bo Hagood, Tim Green
* Contractor/s: MADE Inc., Garth Fladwood Construction
* Date of commencement of project: September 2006
* Date of completion of project: March 2007
* Location of site: Portland, OR, USA
* Site Area: 750 sq. ft.
* Built-up Area: 750 sq. ft.