The soft drinks bar offers a very large selection of coffee, tea bags, biscuits, cream pies and even homemade buns. Plus, in the Butterfly anti-cafe, visitors are allowed to do something that is not allowed to do in any ordinary cafe - they can not order anything at all, but simply eat the food that they brought here with them.
For entertainment, visitors are offered various board games, the latest press, mafia, game console and wi-fi. Nothing and no one can stop a person here from doing what he wants. People come here to read, work, play, and so on.
“Butterflies” also encourages communication and creativity due to its unusual design. The interior is made in light colors. The furniture in the antique cafe is all white, only gray ottomans with blue rugs make the interior a little colorful. Daylight and space make the anti-cafe room simply huge, giving it a feeling of cleanliness and freedom.
The organizers of this extraordinary cafe say that the famous Russian architect Sergei Borisovich Kiselev used to live and work in this room. In their opinion, he transferred all his energy and positive attitude to this place. The employees also assure that the walls of the anti-cafe have a soul. Perhaps that is why this establishment became so popular so quickly: just a month after its opening, there was already a crowd of people here. And the long line even went out onto the stairs and only in the late evening did it dissipate.
According to the authors of this business idea, the basis for the concept of this extraordinary anti-cafe, in which you pay for the actual time of stay, and not the ordered dishes, was the idea of \u200b\u200b“a foreign place” by the famous sociologist Ray Oldenberg. According to this idea, it is with the help of a foreign place that you can temporarily forget about problems at work and household chores. This idea has much in common with Freud's own concept of happiness. According to her, happiness is “when there is a job you love and a loved one.”
Only Oldenberg’s idea has a small addition: “work with pleasure when no one interferes.”
Relatively recently, a new format of entertainment places appeared in Moscow - anti-cafes. Why "anti"? The concept of an establishment of a completely new format first appeared in Russia. Young Russian entrepreneur Ivan Mitin founded the iconic place “Cafe on the Tree” in 2010.
There is no adult who did not build his own hut as a child. The essence of the project was that each guest could drink tea, coffee and eat sweets without restrictions, leaving as much money as he could. After a few months, the Moscow anti-cafe could no longer accommodate everyone.
The incredible popularity of the Tree House forced the founder of the project to look for new territory. Moscow did not allocate premises at the minimum rental rate for anti-cafes.
In order to compensate for the costs of its maintenance, visitors were offered to pay not for the services provided, but for the time spent in the hall. Formally, all visitors became co-tenants of the site, in which they were free to do whatever they wanted, of course, within the framework of certain rules.
The Ziferblat free space opened in 2011 and made it possible not only to sit, drink tea and chat, but also to study, work, play, watch movies and celebrate birthdays. The word “anti-cafe” appeared in the vocabulary of Moscow citizens at the suggestion of businessman Mikhail Mulin for the name of his project “Butterflies”. It has received several synonyms - time cafe or time club. Since 2012, establishments of a new format began to conquer the CIS countries and Europe.
An ordinary cafe strives to feed and drink a guest as quickly as possible in order to free up a table for the next visitors. For this reason, sit there big company and you won’t be able to play mafia, conduct a lesson or presentation without irritating the waiters.
The opportunity to get an area for communication and creativity for little money has made anti-cafes in demand among people of creative professions, aspiring programmers, designers and teachers.
What to do in Moscow anti-cafes
Anticafe is a platform for the implementation of ideas. Young people come here to socialize and get to know each other. There are always a couple of chessboards, a deck of playing cards, Monopoly and other board games.
The era of seclusion and 24/7 surfing online playing computer shooters is slowly disappearing. By the way, there are consoles here too, and they are gaining popularity again. The younger generation increasingly prefers to communicate live, including in anti-cafes. Moscow is gradually weaning itself from the harmful influence of the Internet.
Beginning entrepreneurs often use time clubs to save on office maintenance. Meetings with clients, partners, and contractors can be successfully planned in one of the anticafes in Moscow. There is a desktop, printer, paper and everything you need for a full-fledged office. You will have to brew your own coffee and tea.
Some anticafes provide visitors with the opportunity to rent entire separate rooms for training sessions or master classes. Here you can solve a joint test with classmates or prepare for an exam.
If you don't have friends, you can find them here. You can organize a small party or, by agreement with the administration, watch a hockey or football match. With a good imagination and excellent imagination, it’s easy to organize an interesting date in an anti-cafe in Moscow.
Usually the creation of such an institution is led by two or three energetic people, and they are also responsible for everything that happens inside.
Selection criteria for anti-cafes in Moscow
Moscow has about 70 anti-cafes. The average cost per minute in such an establishment is 1.5-3 rubles. We have selected for you 7 of the most popular anti-cafes in Moscow. When choosing, the following were taken into account:
- services: number of services provided;
- availability: proximity to the metro and how easy it is to find;
- capacity: how many people can be comfortably accommodated at one time;
- prices: how much does a minute of stay and additional services cost?
Anticafe "CheckPoint" - the largest in the world
It is the largest anti-cafe not only in Moscow, but throughout the world. There are 16 rooms with games, projectors and refreshments at guests' disposal. Each of them is unique and decorated in its own style. In one day you can visit 16 cities around the world from New York to Paris and even the ISS space station.
- services: For a pleasant pastime, the anti-cafe has more than 100 board games for every taste and color, 6 consoles, a home theater, tea and coffee with sweets. You can take food with you, order through delivery or in the establishment itself. You will be helped in your work by 5 desktop computers, high-speed Internet, MFP, separate work areas with comfortable tables, meeting rooms and 2 monitors for presentations;
- availability: Anti-cafe "Checkpoint" is a 5-minute walk from the metro station Chistye Prudy or Turgenevskaya, on Myasnitskaya street, 17, building 2;
- schedule: around the clock 24/7/365;
- capacity: it can easily accommodate up to 120 people, and up to 50 in one room;
- prices: in the first hour of stay, 1 minute will cost 2.99 rubles, after that - 2 rubles.
Anticafe with patio
The “green” anti-cafe in Moscow is located next to the Checkpoint, 300 meters away. At the entrance you will be greeted by a cozy area with hammocks, a ping-pong table and benches with a coffee table for drinking tea. This establishment is slightly smaller than its “colleague”, but no less interesting. There are 4 halls of different designs inside.
- services: at your disposal a projector, flipchart, microphone, TV, books, board games and sweets with tea or coffee;
- availability:“Green Door” is located a 6-minute walk from the Chistye Prudy or Turgenevskaya metro stations, in Milyutinsky Lane, 19/4;
- schedule: around the clock 24/7/365;
- capacity: 5 halls are designed for up to 160 people;
- prices: the first hour will cost 3 rubles/min, the second – 2 rubles/min, the third – 1 rubles/min.
Anticafe "Butterflies" (closed)
The Moscow anti-cafe “Butterflies” opened its doors to everyone in 2012. Almost immediately it gained popularity among those who like to have a good time. The anti-cafe has several founders who took care of their guests and worked on every detail. The territory of the establishment is divided into 6 zones with a stylish modern design. The list of services here is not the most typical for a Moscow anti-cafe.
- services: It’s worth noting separately that you have your own kitchen, where prices are very reasonable and tasty food. A creative atmosphere, board games, a cinema hall, wi-fi and tea, coffee and treats are a must-have attribute of almost every anti-cafe. Two BENQ projectors, computers, MFPs, flipcharts and stationery will help you in your work. There are cumulative discounts for regular guests;
- availability: the establishment is waiting for you within a 10-minute walk from the Taganskaya metro station, on Taganskaya street, 29, building 1. You can get here through the arch of the 29th building;
- schedule: establishments Mon-Sun from 12:00 to 00:00;
- capacity: this place can accommodate up to 100 people;
- prices: a minute will cost 2 rubles.
Anticafe - the first space
The largest chain of anti-cafes in the world, which is absolutely logical, because it was Ivan Mitin who was the founder of the first such place. There are two anti-cafes of this chain in Moscow. They have a lot in common, but the main thing is that both are located in former apartments, and therefore have a homely interior and hardly look like commercial projects. Rather, these are creative places where friends and comrades gather to discuss news, who is doing what, and just chat.
In terms of its decoration, the Moscow anti-cafe “Tsiferblat” is inferior to its previous “comrades”. Here you will not find a game console, large plasma, projector or computer. This place is more suitable for simple, relaxed communication with loved ones, flights of creative thought, but not for working using special technical means or playing video games and watching movies.
- services: tea, coffee, treats, board games, piano and homely, cozy atmosphere;
- availability: located on Tverskaya, 12, building 1 (2 min. walk from Tverskaya metro station) and on Pokrovka, 12, building 1 (15 min. walk from Chistye Prudy metro station);
- schedule: from 10:00 to 00:00 (Tverskaya) and Sun-Thu from 10:00 to 00:00, Fri-Sat from 10:00 to 07:00 (Pokrovka);
- capacity: Tverskaya will be able to accommodate up to 120 people, Pokrovka - up to 100;
- prices: Each establishment has uniform rates: in the first hour - 3 rubles per minute, from the second - 2 rubles, and the maximum amount you can leave per day is 540 rubles.
Anticafe - home-style
The anti-cafe belongs to the Time Club chain, which has 4 establishments in Moscow. How is this place different from others? Firstly, if you don’t like something in the first 20 minutes, they won’t charge you any money. Secondly, the charming cat Aposha is waiting for you inside this curious place. Thirdly, all guests here are given slippers. Fourthly, there is a separate kitchen where you can get treats and drinks.
The premises of the anti-cafe "Nest" in the past were an ordinary apartment, which was transferred to a non-residential fund, where passionate and creative people now gather. If you regularly visit this place, then you should think about purchasing a club card. With it you will have nice bonuses and additional services. There are 5 types of cards in total: guest, bronze, silver, gold and platinum. All except the guest one cost 500, 2,000, 5,000 and 15,000 rubles respectively.
- services: You will be happy to play “Mafia”, board games, watch a movie or negotiate with a presentation. A computer and a quiet environment will help you work. Tea, coffee and treats are naturally present;
- availability: located on Lyalin Lane, 8, building 2. The nearest metro station is Kurskaya, the walk will take about 10 minutes;
- schedule: around the clock, 24/7/365
- capacity: only 5 halls designed for 60-70 people;
- prices: the same standard in all places. There are 5 time zones, the cost of a minute in each of them is different. The average price for 1 hour is 149 rubles, a minute – from 0.99 to 3.99 rubles.
Which anticafes in Moscow offer the lowest prices? Where is the cheapest place to spend time in a cafe in Moscow?
In Moscow, cafes have become widespread where you pay only for the time spent in it, and tea, coffee and simple treats are provided free of charge. Such places are called differently: free spaces, clubs, cafes with per-minute payment, anti-cafes. Despite the difference in names, the principles of operation of such establishments are similar. There are no such cafes and clubs full menu, but it is possible to bring food with you, or order it delivered.
The free spaces have everything you need for both relaxation and work. For example, almost everywhere there are a variety of board games, and various events are held - lectures, master classes, concerts, etc. For work, there are rooms equipped with sockets, free wi-fi, libraries, film projectors, MFPs, etc.
Alcohol and smoking are prohibited in almost all anti-cafes and free spaces (it is allowed only in specially designated areas).
When talking about anti-cafes in Moscow, one cannot help but touch on the history of their origin.
Similar cafes with per-minute payment began to open in the capital at the end of 2011, and the pioneers of this business were Ivan Mitin and Indira Staringat, who invented the “Tree House” entertainment club, which was reminiscent of a home cafe. Studio guests were asked to pay as much as they saw fit. This money was used to pay rent and other expenses, including tea, coffee and treats for guests (cookies, gingerbread). The cafe became very popular and could no longer accommodate everyone, so the idea of expansion arose. This is how the idea arose to create a free space called “Ziferblat”, where visitors pay not for food, but for the time spent there.
The first anti-cafe “Tsiferblat” opened on Pokrovka, then the same leisure areas appeared in other cities - St. Petersburg, Kyiv, Nizhny Novgorod, Odessa, Kazan. They also appeared in other countries. There are also several such cafes in Moscow. The founders call their project a free space or cafe. A cozy homely atmosphere has been created here without the pathos of a restaurant so that a person can relax for a while from the crazy bustle of the big city. At Ziferblat you can drink tea, coffee, and you can bring food and drinks with you. Here you can work, be creative, relax with friends, read a book, in general, do whatever your heart desires with the exception of drinking alcohol and smoking (you can smoke on the street).
Now in Moscow, and in other cities, there are a huge number of anti-cafes, free spaces, cafe-clubs and other entertainment clubs with per-minute payment. Anticafes are popular mainly among young people. They usually spend 2-3 hours in an anti-cafe, and if they play games, they stay for up to 5 hours. This is a very interesting format of an entertainment venue, very convenient for gathering large groups who want to have fun. I would like to note that over the past year, anti-cafes in the capital have not decreased, but, on the contrary, increased. Each of them strives to stand out somehow. Some are positioning themselves as centers for board games, others are making concessions on the menu, allowing alcohol, and others are increasing the number of their branches. In general, anti-cafes have now firmly occupied their niche in the cultural life of Moscow.
As for prices, there is no particularly strong variation. The cost of a minute ranges from 1 to 3.99 rubles, but, nevertheless, this was the determining criterion when compiling the anti-cafe rating.