Bay Area Round House Cafe Will Reopen As An Equator coffee shop

The Round House Cafe will reopen later this summer or early fall as an Equator Coffees shop. — The Round House Cafe will reopen later this summer or early fall as an Equator Coffees shop

In March 2020, the circular red restaurant at the southeastern end of the Golden Gate Bridge known as the Round House Cafe shuttered. The Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy, which operated the cafe, announced the closure just before the pandemic shutdowns, citing “significant challenges in food preparation services.”

But now, another business will breathe new life into the historic building that first opened in 1938 as a roadside diner. According to the San Francisco Business Times, Equator Coffees will move into the Round House space, once again giving people an opportunity to grab a drink and a snack before walking or biking across the Golden Gate Bridge. This will be the Marin County-based coffee roaster and retail operator’s seventh location, all of which are located in the Bay Area.

The new Equator location will open later this summer or early fall with a remodeled interior. The circular building’s nearly 360-degree-view of the bridge, however, will remain unobstructed.

“The circle of the building allows for focus inward for warmth and comfort and gathering, as well as a perch for outward panoramic views of this mighty context,” architect Sarah Fucinaro, who is leading the interior remodeling of the new Equator cafe, told the SF Business Times. “We wanted to celebrate both.”