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A new concept brings French cafe culture to The Exchange.
Come in for coffee. Stay until dinnertime. That’s the missing piece Cafe Royale aims to bring to Midtown’s The Exchange.
Filling the hole left by WRK by The Optimist is the new French-inspired all-day cafe concept by local hospitality luminary Patrick Shanahan and the team behind Capulet Cocktail Club and Rosebud Cocktail Lounge, set to open as early as September. Named for the juxtaposition of a humble cafe and the opulent feel of Royale, the space is designed to carry guests from morning coffee and breakfast to evening snacks and cocktails—all under one roof.
“It just seemed like this was the right project and the right space to bring something to life that was missing—and is needed,” emphasizes Shanahan—“not only as a great amenity to the building, but also to welcome the community and all of Raleigh.”
Then comes the transportive part. Shanahan describes the interior as “a French trip down the rabbit hole”—and he’s not exaggerating. Inspired by chinoiserie and layered with ornate details and peculiar touches, the colorful, maximalist space combines Gucci pink-heron wallpaper, oversized florals, marble-topped bistro tables, rattan chairs, teal couches and glossy black-lacquered finishes into something that feels equal parts European bistro, Palm Beach lounge and Alice in Wonderland. Even the patio joins the fantasy, dotted with bright-red umbrellas and awnings that practically beg you to linger over one more glass of Champagne.
Fortunately, the menu encourages exactly that. Pulling from proper French bistro culture, the simple healthy-meets-hearty menu is designed for grazing rather than rushing—where flaky pastries and leisurely lattes stretch into quiches and crisp salads, before giving way to wine, cheese and caviar as evening settles in.
As the room shifts from daylight to dusk, afternoon tea and coffee courtesy of iconic Italian roaster Illy will give way to a heavy focus on gins, bubbles and Champagne—carving a specific lane that will set it apart from 1000 Social’s tequila-heavy Mezcalito and Capulet’s amari emphasis. “Low-ABV is such a big thing right now, and wine lends itself so nicely to that, as well as different botanical spirits,” says Shanahan.
That slower pace is exactly the point. The result, Shanahan describes, speaks to a crossgenerational take on French opulence that feels very much ooh, la la: highly decorative, like many of his other concepts, but also playful and approachable—and different.
“The three concepts work so well in tandem together,” Shanahan says of The Exchange’s Peregrine, Capulet and now Cafe Royale. “We envision this world where someone can pop between the three and have a very different night—whether you have dinner at Peregrine, then wine at Cafe Royale and a nightcap at Capulet; or start your night at Capulet, then have a light dinner at Cafe Royale and end up with an espresso martini at Peregrine.”
In a city that often rewards grabbing coffee to go, Cafe Royale is betting people still crave something slower: a place you might stumble into on a Euro vacation, built around the simple pleasure of lingering.
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