The new Silecroft Beach Café, designed by Konishi Gaffney Architects, is a striking addition to the Lake District National Park, situated on the scenic Cumbrian coast. Perched on Silecroft Beach, it offers stunning views of the Irish Sea and the imposing Black Combe Fell. The café’s design, featuring an exposed timber roof and bespoke external shutters, blends contemporary aesthetics with the rugged beauty of the coastline.

Inspired by traditional whitewashed seaside cottages, the building’s splayed plan creates two sheltered courtyards, providing year-round enjoyment regardless of the weather. Large-section Douglas Fir timber fins enhance the interior, highlighting the building's structural expression, while a palette of durable materials—slate roofing, white render, and black steel shutters—reinterprets local vernacular styles.

The external shutters, developed in collaboration with Turner Prize-winning artist Martin Boyce, feature a modernist pattern that integrates art with architecture, enhancing the visitor experience. The café, part of a wider visitor hub, aims to boost tourism in the region, catering to beachgoers, hikers, and water sports enthusiasts, and includes a Changing Places accessible toilet.

This award-winning project, completed in 2024, has revitalised the local environment, creating a sustainable, all-weather destination for visitors to the Lake District's remarkable coastline.