NYC’s Newest Hip All-Day Cafe Dishes Out Homey Japanese Fare

The owner of East Village Japanese small plates hit Izakaya has expanded with Davelle, a 22-seat Japanese all-day cafe now open on the LES.

Located in the former Soy space at 102 Suffolk St., between Delancey and Rivington streets, Davelle is a kissaten, a classic Japanese cafe-restaurant where coffee and food are meant to be consumed together. Thus, daytime offerings come with 95 RPM coffee — look out for a light custom roast soon — and include small dishes like Japanese-style toast. The morning sets come with a boiled egg and potato salad. Lunch relies on soup and salad and will include dishes like a Japanese curry rice, fried chicken, and spaghetti. Come dinnertime, the focus is on oden, a Japanese-style hot pot.

Fitting with a strong emphasis on design, the food is colorful, popping against the sleek ceramic dishware perfectly iterated for Instagram. It’s a small space, but owner Yudai Kanayama and his partners used their experience in fashion to meticulously design the restaurant, which is entirely furnished with vintage pieces. The idea was to create a welcoming and “chill” place, Kanayama says.

Kanayama already has experience with turning small spaces into hip hot spots. He’s behind the tiny East Village hit Izakaya — which became popular despite its very SEO-unfriendly name, receiving praise from the Times’ Hungry City column — as well as Canal Street Market food hall stand Izakaya Samurice.

With Davelle, Kanayama jumps into the all-day cafe craze. It’s been a popular genre as of late, with morning-to-night restaurants of all cuisines popping up around NYC, from the Middle Eastern- and North African-influenced Studio to the California cool West-bourne and Parisian La Mercerie, which features a retail component.

Like La Mercerie, Kanayama and his partners plan a retail component at Davelle eventually, too. Davelle is still waiting on its liquor license, but according to Kanayama, the restaurant will eventually offer beer and sake as well as a wine program centered on natural wines, another example of Davelle leaning into recent NYC restaurant trends.

Update: Take a look at photos and the full menu here.