Independent bungalows in the city once followed a pattern — photo frames of a smiling family hung on the walls, rooms custom designed, large kitchens for relatives to gather to cook. Each brick held a story of the family that lived in the house.
Slowly, black marks lingered around photo frames, dust settled into the corners of wooden beams, and vessels that once clattered, turned silent. Moments on the verandahs became memories. Soon, most of them were demolished, making way for apartments or commercial establishments. But today, some of these old homes are being perceived differently. They are being transformed into cafés.
Where once families gathered, friends and loved ones now come together, sip coffee, and experience slices of the city’s past. “It is important to restore these spaces because this is the only connection we have to our ancestors, and the identity of the city is its old buildings. It doesn’t necessarily have to be a café. It could just be a library or any unwinding space, and a lot of people are getting into this,” shares Faizal Manzur, principal architect, Faizal Manzur Design Studio.
Practicality of the process
One such business transition was halt., Anna Nagar, which initially started as a kiosk. halt. was expanded into a sit-down café in 2023. A team member says, “The houses in Anna Nagar and Nungambakkam come under old planned towns, and some of them are converted into cafés because of the availability of space. It is more than just a square area in commercial spaces.”
The café is inspired by the 100-year-old building that houses Joseph Bar in Goa where the management went with the old charm. Soon, the Halt. team found an abandoned house built in the 80s in Anna Nagar and transformed it into a raw, rustic, and unfinished space that embraces the passage of time. The aesthetics are enhanced with soft lights accentuating the texture on the wall, deliberately leaving visible patches as the reference space. “The house has a load-bearing wall, and there is a different technique that goes into the making. It is a very great construction. The engineering behind it comes out of the base, which is difficult to work with,” notes the founder, who is also an architect. “To balance history with design, they reclaimed 80% of the wood, including old windows, and leaned into an aesthetic of ruins,” he adds.
A few kilometres away is Una Villa Restaurant and Bakery, off Uthamar Gandhi Road, housed in a 60-year-old bungalow. Offering some of the city’s finest loaves and layers of nostalgia, while carrying on the legacy of the house, Udhaya Kumar, operations manager at the eatery, says, “We did not do much with the interior, but added a garden in the front. We had full freedom from the owners of the space.”
For café owners, a decision like this is practical, emotional, and shaped by the pull of trends, which ultimately impacts the outcome. “We saw many commercial properties in the city, but we chose to convert a house because it was a unique concept, starting to pick up. It makes customers feel like ‘home’, and that’s the vibe Lafayette gives. Comfort is the first priority,” says Swetha Kishore, founder of Lafayette by Mug Cakes.
To keep the nostalgia alive, the team retained all the doors, windows, and walls and added furniture, aesthetic lighting, and flooring.
Swetha notes, “Some bungalows built in the 1920s by the British still stand tall and are revamped for people to witness architecture and culture.” Chandini Agarwal, an architect and interior designer, adds, “People can reminisce about the old way of construction, the techniques and architectural elements and features.”
Shared stories
Beyond just a trend, it is also reshaping eating experiences. Chandini believes that this practice is here to stay. Citing The Entrance Cafe as an example, she says, “Here, the previous garden area is reimagined and reshaped with a coy pond, which according to Vastu, is a great addition to have a water element at the entrance of a space and also adds as a good point of attraction when you are waiting to get your table. There is a seating set-up around the pond for outdoor seating. All of these elements are painted green, giving an antique feeling, because that is how a patina looks.”
Faizal came on board in 2021 to add life to this once-abandoned mountain of bricks. The 50-year-old bungalow in Nungambakkam, which is now The Entrance Cafe, is a blend of old and new. “They (the management) want [the visitors] to drop off all of their sorrows, stress, and difficulties at the main entrance,” says Faizal. To make this process easier, the team emphasised having 100-year-old church doors sourced from Puducherry.
The lighting was custom-designed with bamboo fan lights and soft pendant fixtures to recreate a cosy “Madras 60s vibe”. An open spiral staircase is closed and made into a dark room that leads the customers into other rooms to give the effect of the homes that we grew up in — cosy and effortless. For Faizal, such projects go beyond ambience: “It becomes a public space and creates awareness among people as to why it is important to restore heritage buildings. It also promotes a homebound effect.”
Past becomes present
Architects agree that the thought and planning of older homes is what makes these cafés meaningful. For Chandini, climate efficiency adds to the home’s value. “Most of the older houses in Chennai are built very climate and energy-efficient. These houses are more efficient than the new cafés that are built with glass, where you will have to increase the ventilation and install more air conditioning units.”
Adding to the list of architectural marvels of Madras houses, Faizal mentions, “There’s a reason why the windows are smaller, placed in a certain direction — for the wind to pass and sunlight is not too harsh. They used to bring in eggshells and mosaic flooring, which is cooling for the house. They would use a lot of authentic lime plaster walls. So these are things that they have invented and have passed on to the next generation, which needs to be restored.”
City speaks
Are Chennaiites welcoming this trend? “It’s really nice to see how Chennai is slowly fantasising this trend. You see it in places like Amethyst in Royapettah, Wild Garden Café inside a heritage bungalow, or Kipling Café in Akkarai, which gives such a rustic and timeless feel. It’s almost like we’re preserving heritage without locking it up in museums while letting people sit, talk, and create new memories in spaces that already hold decades of stories,” says Monika S, a content writer.
Concurring how such transformations are practical in creating a deeper connection with the audiences, Shruthi M, a teacher, says, “This trend makes sense. People are giving these areas a second chance at life rather than demolishing them. Creating Instagram-worthy locations is only one goal; another is preserving a small portion of the city’s past so that visitors can enjoy it every day.”
Meanwhile, some café-goers feel that “it can be a bit much.” Kavyaa R, another content writer, argues, “It feels like it is all for our Instagram feed. When a place has real stories and warmth behind it, you can actually feel the history. That’s when these cafés really mean something and not just another backdrop. “
These homes-turned-cafés embody continuity. Courtyards, teak wood frames, terracotta tiles, and verandahs speak of a Madras that was, even as modern menus and soft lighting welcome today’s occupants. And as Chandini reminds us, “The Instagram-worthy spaces are as short-lived as the duration of an Instagram story.” What endures is the architecture, the stories within the walls, and the reminder that if these homes are not preserved, they risk being lost to the city’s appetite for concrete. In the end, every cup of coffee poured in these verandahs is not just a nod to nostalgia, but an act of preservation and a way to hold on to the identity of a city that still breathes through its old buildings.