The Chapel by Vinklu, a Micro-Architecture Landmark in Romania
On Homedit we shared different architecture and interior design ideas, but a coffee shop like this is unlike anything we’ve featured before. In the dense fabric of Bucharest, where leftover urban spaces often sit unnoticed, The Chapel by Vinklu transforms an impossibly narrow gap on Bazilescu Street into one of the most striking small-scale architectural interventions in Europe.
The project, home to Boiler Coffee, takes a residual sliver of land and turns it into a glowing, triangular beacon that redefines what can be built in tight city conditions.
Working with an extreme footprint, the architects treated the site with surgical precision. The A-frame silhouette isn’t just a visual decision; it maximizes height, volume, and light inside a footprint that would typically feel unusable. The fully glazed façade acts like a light vessel, pulling natural light deep into the space during the day and turning the building into a lantern at night.
Warm timber wraps the tall interior, creating a calm, focused atmosphere that contrasts with the compact plan. Despite its size, the space feels surprisingly open due to the pointed apex and the clarity of the materials.
The Chapel doesn’t just solve a constraint; it turns it into identity. It demonstrates how forgotten urban gaps can become meaningful public places when light, form, and intention come together. For Bucharest—and for European micro-architecture—it stands as a rare example of small-scale ingenuity with a surprisingly large impact.
General Contractor: Retrodraft/Hala13
Glass façade: AluSYSTEM
Photography: Vlad Patru, Laurian Ghinitoiu