Expanding and Reimagining the French Café
/Today’s BrickNerd article comes from guest contributor Brickproject, a builder in France who specializes in architectural buildings and microscale creations.
The French Café
As a French LEGO fan-builder, I had the opportunity on behalf of BrickNerd to look at set 10362 French Café, a beautiful homage to our “café en terrasse” culture, featuring 1,101 crafted pieces.
The purpose of this article is, of course, to take a quick look at the set, but more importantly, to add my personal touch to the model and explore ways to reimagine the set. So please enjoy the review, expansion and reimagining of LEGO’s French Café.
Lunch in France
Getting right into it, the designer of the set chose to depict the ground floor of a cute traditional French corner café, taking inspiration from different regions of France. The abundant ivy, greenery, and pastel-toned facade immediately remind me of a small “Provençal” village / South of France.
But I think he was also inspired by typical Parisian bistros, featuring this nice “café en terrasse” with some cute cone-shaped trees and a black lamppost.
A Quick Review
One of the things that I noticed right from the start of the build is the use of a few new interesting techniques. For example, the use of SNOT (Studs Not On Top) using arch 1x2 jumpers (38583) to create a cobblestone effect on the ground is pretty innovative for an official LEGO set. Although this may increase the set’s total piece count, I love it as it results in a really unique-looking floor.
There are some nice complex angle techniques using 63° 2x4 pointed wedges to form a facade with approximately 30° angle walls on both sides, with all gaps perfectly filled. Finally, there are several clever NPUs (Nice Part Usages), notably the jagged step drill (28598) to create trees, the circular shield (91884) to form the tabletops, and the holder ring with 3 bar holes (1941) to shape the chair backs.
I also love here the use of pastel colors, such as light and medium nougat, light aqua, white, and sand green, mixed with a greenish touch and floral elements, which bring a subtle nostalgic vibe and create a charming atmosphere.
The model is packed with numerous details, including five café chairs with four tables filled with elements such as coffee, a newspaper, a croissant, and other pastries. It also features three cone-shaped trimmed boxwoods, a sidewalk easel displaying the menu, a street lamp, three hanging flower pots, and a cash register inside.
Regarding the structure, it has a fully enclosed back and each extra element is securely attached using combinations of SNOT bricks and clips with bar elements (mechanical clip claw, candle bar, 2L stop ring bar, …). The benefit of this kind of construction results in a very sturdy model as you can hold the set upside down or even shake it, and all the elements will stay intact!
Also, it’s a good thing that the set does not use any stickers, which enhances its premium and high price point feel. So, we get a printed 2x4 oval tile in pearl gold featuring a sweet ornamental design with the inscription “Café Fleur.” The same inscription appears again on a 2x2 black flag used as a menu.
(Book elements in the right photo 24324 and 3069pb0507 are not included in the set and are only shown for comparative purposes.)
Additionally, there are some classy gold decorative details on two 1x3x6 trans-clear doors and six trans-clear book covers that I really love. These book covers are used here as glass canopy awnings, but they can also serve as lovely decorative elements for a book (see image above for reference). If LEGO plans to expand the series with more “Restaurants of the World” (in the same line as the “Gardens of the World” series), it could be interesting to include a geographical printed tile (for example here "“France, Café”) on the black framing in front of the model to add a collector’s touch to the sets, much like in the Architecture series.
Overall, I found the building experience very enjoyable and learned many new interesting techniques while assembling the model. This is a lovely-looking model packed with plenty of tiny details offering a premium display piece for adults that can be easily transported or moved without elements coming apart. The choice of colors and printed decorations is pretty unique and original, creating a visually appealing and pleasing set.
But what else can we do with it?
Reimagine a “Parisian” Scene
This LEGO set invites us to go further by upgrading, rebuilding, and deconstructing it, reflecting the question asked in the manual: “Maybe this building experience will inspire you to create your own special builds?” That’s precisely what I did
My initial goal was to enhance the set by adding a second floor and a roof. The complex angles made this a challenging task, particularly when constructing the roof. However, I came up with workarounds and was able to complete the facade. For this initial attempt, I decided not to alter a single piece from the original model.
To build the facade, I drew inspiration from Parisian Haussmann-style architecture, featuring stone-colored bricks and blue zinc roofs. To make the wall more realistic, I used a combination of different brick textures, including modified bricks with log (30136) and masonry (98283) profile bricks, some 1x1 round bricks, some visible studs (created using SNOT bricks), and added a few dark tan pieces to create a weathered effect.
To keep the back of the model as flat as possible, I decided to replace part of the roof with a stone chimney featuring orange clay chimney pots, typical of Parisian buildings. On the roof, I also included an antenna to add a bit of realism.
To extend the scenery, I decided to add a section of road to the terrace and to include a few details, such as a small blue bicycle, a typical Parisian-looking Minifigure with a beret and a baguette, as well as an old car inspired by the classic Citroën 2CV model.
If you want to build this model, I’ve assembled some building instructions that you can download here.
Reimagine What You Reimagine
As a quick experiment, I also wanted to rebuild the ground floor as inspired by the upper floors that I had created. I attempted a second variation this time by modifying the colors of the ground floor, replacing the light nougat bricks with reddish brown ones by using some grill/fluted profile bricks (2877), and reworking the facade while removing the arch.
If you want, you can create multiple variations of this model to recreate a typical Parisian scene.
Additionally, you can also enhance the facade of the French Café by adding awnings and railings and experimenting with different colors, depending on the atmosphere you want to create (I used some blue/white and coral/white patterns here).
Reimagine a “Provençal” Scene
For this second attempt, I wanted to try something bigger by transforming the set into a modular-style building. Once again here, I didn’t want to change the original set but rather extend it. Since this set has an almost perfectly vertical back facade, I used it as the foundation to construct my modular building behind it.
I slightly reworked the top of the official set to create a nice balcony that will be very useful later. I also extended the alley on both sides to provide a solid base for the foundation of the extension.
On the ground floor, I decided to extend the café/restaurant by adding red sofas, commonly found in French cafés.
I also included a coffee machine and other typical elements (cash register, shelf, croissant and baguette) to enhance the authenticity of the setting.
On the side, I added an exterior staircase to access the first floor, which adds depth to the model and prevents the facades from looking too flat. On the first floor, you will find a few round tables to create a more inviting dining space.
The second exterior staircase provides access to the balcony (which serves as the roof of the French café). The upper floors follow the common layout of many café/restaurant buildings, where living spaces—often for staff members—are located above the restaurant. I designed a small but functional kitchen on this level. Inside, a third staircase leads up to the attic, where two beds and additional furniture (lamp and chimney) create a cozy living space. The roofs can be removed for easier access.
To create a bullseye window effect, you simply need to use arches to form a round opening and place four 1x2x2 windows (ID 60592) behind.
As you can see in the images, I added light bluish-grey pipes all around the model and, as before, played with the brick textures and colors to add realism to the build. By assembling everything and adding ivy and plant elements all around, you can create the charming atmosphere of a small village café, similar to those found in Provence / South of France. You can also play with the color of the roof, window shutters, and doors to create completely different atmospheres and add a few minifigures to bring the model to life.
If you want to build this model, I’ve assembled some building instructions with parts lists that you can download here.
Final Thoughts
10362 French Café is a great display set, well constructed, with plenty of details that give it a nice collector’s appeal. I really like the idea of showcasing the ground floor of a café instead of featuring the full facade (with a second floor and a roof), to avoid using too many pieces and focus on the details of the café only. Those features can be added later on if you want to incorporate the set into a LEGO city.
That’s a good thing because it allows us to customize the model—by extending it upwards and at the back—and to experiment with different atmospheres. It is interesting to see how drastically the ambiance can change - from a “Parisian” bistro to a “Provençal” café - without altering the original set, just by adding some extra pieces.
It was truly a fun and challenging experience, and I thank BrickNerd for allowing me to receive this set early, as well as LEGO for sending me a copy of the model. I hope you, the readers, will enjoy following my creative process behind the extension for this set, and even inspire you to create your own extension! I look forward to hearing your feedback!
What extension would you build for the café? Let us know in the comments below!
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