February 7, 2026
Holy grounds or hot glass?
Vinklu Turns Forgotten Plot in Bucharest into Tiny Coffee Shop
Bucharest’s skinny “Chapel” café sparks holy praise, hot takes, and selfie wars
TLDR: A razor-thin glass café called The Chapel has turned a forgotten Bucharest plot into a glowing mini landmark. Fans hail it as smart, small-city design; critics warn of gentrified lattes, heat and bird risk, and influencer swarms—raising big questions about how tiny spaces shape urban life.
Bucharest just turned a sliver of leftover land into a glowing, glassy micro-café called The Chapel—and the internet is arguing like it’s the World Cup of coffee. Design fans are swooning over the bold triangular shard that lights up at night, calling it a “mini-lantern for the city” and a proof-of-concept that tiny spaces can make big waves. Locals? Mixed. Some adore the cozy wood-lined interior and the way the tall glass pulls in daylight; others are already rolling their eyes at what they predict will be “flat whites priced like confessions.”
The biggest drama: glass. Supporters say the thick, energy-efficient windows and tree canopy keep things cool and bright without turning it into a greenhouse. Critics clap back with memes of a “solar toaster,” plus worries about glare and birds. Then there’s the size debate: fans argue it’s meant for quick, intimate sips—not laptop camps—while skeptics joke “two people and a barista = capacity.”
Neighborhood folks are unexpectedly into the off-site build, cheering that it went up fast with minimal mess. Meanwhile, meme-lords have crowned it “holy grounds,” predicting influencer queues around the block. Love it or roast it, everyone agrees: this tiny shard just hijacked Bucharest’s streetscape—and the comments section.
Key Points
- •Vinklu transformed a narrow residual plot on Bazilescu Street in Bucharest into The Chapel, a tiny coffee shop.
- •The building’s sharp triangular prism form maximizes a limited footprint and creates dramatic vertical presence.
- •A high-performance, triple-glazed glass facade floods the interior with daylight and turns the building into a glowing lantern at night.
- •Off-site fabrication and a lightweight steel frame enabled efficient construction with reduced waste and neighborhood disruption.
- •Despite being 463 square feet, the interior uses light-toned wood and a tall roofline to feel open, intimate, and welcoming.