Spiral Cafe Birmingham, Costa Seashell Bullring

Spiral Cafe, Spiceal Street Birmingham, Bullring Design, Curved bronze roof Building, Property Images

Spiral Cafe Birmingham : Spiceal Street

Costa Seashell design by Marks Barfield Architects in Birmingham, West Midlands, central England, UK

18 Jan 2012

Spiceal Street

St Martin’s Square, Bullring
Dates built: 2010-12
Design: Chapman Taylor Architects

Designed by architects Chapman Taylor. The development has an undulating roof and comprises of top restaurants.

Chapman Taylor

Adjacent building in St Martin’s Square:

Spiral Cafe

St Martin’s Square, Bullring
Date built: 2004
Design: Marks Barfield Architects

Spiral Cafe Birmingham Spiral Cafe Birmingham Spiral Cafe Birmingham

Spiral Cafe aka Costa ‘Seashell’ Café

Copper Design Award 2005

News update – Sep 2010

Costa Seashell cafe due to be relocated to make space for a design by Chapman Taylor Architects for Hammerson.

Marks Barfield Architects

In 2005, a small Costa Coffee café, designed by Marks Barfield Architects and dubbed the Spiral Café, was constructed alongside the steps leading towards to New Street from St Martin’s Square. The building’s shape resembled that of shell and featured a curved bronze roof with both ends covered with glass.

The main contractors were Thomas Vale and the structural engineers were Price & Myers. The building form is inspired by the mathematician Leonardo Fibonacci who identified natural patterns of growth found throughout the universe, from the shapes of shells and pines cones to fractal patterns within galaxies.

The café was knocked down (or relocated? comments welcome please) as part of the Spiceal Street redevelopment in 2011. The new Spiceal Street opened on 24 November 2011.

The shopping centre’s design has been criticised. In 2008, a poll conducted in conjunction with SimCity Creator stated that Bullring was the ugliest building in the country.

Location: St Martin’s Square, Bullring, Birmingham, West Midlands, Central England, UK

Birmingham Architecture

Birmingham Architectural Tours : city walks by e-architect

Birmingham Architecture Designs – chronological list

Birmingham Buildings

Birmingham Architect

East Beach café, Littlehampton, West Sussex
Date built: 2007
Design: Heatherwick Studio
East Beach café
photo : Andy Stagg
English Beach café

Selfridges Birmingham
Date built: 2005
Design: Future Systems Architects
Selfridges Birmingham
photo © webbaviation
Selfridges Birmingham

The Rotunda Conversion
Dates built: 2005-08
Design: Glenn Howells Architects
The Rotunda Birmingham
photo © Nic Gaunt
Birmingham landmark

Restaurant Interior

West Midlands Building Designs

Recent Contemporary Architecture in Birmingham – architectural selection below:

Martineau Galleries Development
Design: Glenn Howells Architects ; Landscape Architects: Grant Associates
Martineau Galleries Birmingham Architecture News
image courtesy of architects
Martineau Galleries Birmingham Development
Hammerson has submitted outline plans for the multi-million-pound regeneration of its 7.5-acre Martineau Galleries site in the heart of Birmingham, including a proposal to deliver 1,200 new homes.

Temporary Theatre for the Wolverhampton Grand
Design: Keith Williams Architects
Wolverhampton Grand Theatre Temporary building
rendering : Lichfield
Wolverhampton Grand Temporary Theatre Building
Keith Williams Architects’ proposals on an adjoining site currently occupied by a long redundant 1960s post office building, include a new adjoining studio form theatre, bars and public spaces beneath a lightweight steel framed sawtooth roof.

Comments / photos for the Spiral Cafe BirminghamSt Martin’s Square Architecture page welcome

Birmingham, UK