Art Deco Meets Whimsy at Dear Guest Cafe in Los Angeles

On a busy stretch of Sunset Boulevard, a playful cafe steeped in the aromas of lavender and honey awaits. A quiet departure from reality, Dear Guest in the Silver Lake neighborhood of Los Angeles feels less like a neighborhood bakery and more like the imaginative opening scene of an artistic film.

Designed by Los Angeles-based Studio Jialun Xiong, the 1,100-square-foot interior blends the elegance of 1930s Art Deco design with the dreamlike wonder of Studio Ghibli’s animated worlds, creating a space suspended between nostalgia and whimsy. The interiors are fully customized, which contributes to their welcoming, familiar feel.

“It’s almost like a memory you can’t quite place,” says Jialun Xiong. “We wanted to create somewhere that feels slightly removed from everyday life—playfulness comes through in the colors and shapes, while the dreamlike quality is what ties everything together.”

Drawing inspiration from Parisian boutique hotels and traditional Japanese ryokans, the carefully layered design references create an environment that borrows from hospitality rituals, not just its aesthetics.

Photography by Elizabeth Carababas

Customers enter through an outdoor seating area furnished with custom butter-yellow ombré tabletops and the studio’s new Extrusion Stools, establishing a tone of color, pattern, and play that carries throughout the experience. A concierge-style pastry counter welcomes guests near the entrance, while traditional European crown molding is paired with a reflective silver ceiling to create a slightly surreal effect.

Photography by Elizabeth Carababas

For Xiong, the pastry counter is where the story of Dear Guest comes to life. “There’s something about that sense of arrival and hospitality that I really like,” she says. “The idea of creating an experience beyond just having coffee and pastries. I think it captures the personality of the project quite naturally.”

Geometry and repetition are at the center of Dear Guest. Circles of varying sizes and rounded forms appear repeatedly in mirrors, while grid patterns recur throughout the wall panels, banquettes, lighting, and bar. The result is a sense of intention, with each element thoughtfully curated to advance the story unfolding within the cafe.

Photography by Elizabeth Carababas

Furnished almost exclusively with pieces by Studio Jialun Xiong, the interior showcases the studio’s use of color as a form of creative expression. The soft yellow of the Void Chair contrasts with the cocoa-brown leather of the Skeleton Lounge Chair.

Black glazed tiles and warm gray quartz countertops complement the pearlescent hot-glass tile backsplash that defines the bar. Despite the variety of shades and textures, the space maintains a strong sense of restraint and consistency.

Photography by Elizabeth Carababas

“I think working with a richer palette actually makes proportion, rhythm, and visual balance even more important,” Xiong says. “We wanted the space to feel layered, but not maximalist. There’s still a quiet sense of order that brings everything together.”

Photography by Elizabeth Carababas

A row of custom pendant lights is suspended above the tables, while a patinated bronze, star-shaped joinery detail adorns the cabinet on the opposite wall. In the bathroom, silver walls are embellished with hand-painted illustrations featuring motifs often found in hotels.

“I like mixing things that feel familiar with something a bit unusual or playful,” says Xiong. “It’s more about those little moments you discover as you spend time in the space.”

Malia Agostinelli is a writer and editor blending design and the built environment with the art of storytelling. Rarely found without a pen in hand, she also enjoys exploring new countries, taking yoga classes, and gathering inspiration for her Substack, Collected Elsewhere.