FabCafe Hida
The FabCafe digital creative cafe concept first arrived back in 2012 when its inaugural branch opened in Tokyo’s Shibuya. It revolutionised what to expect from the standard cafe experience and is now a global franchise, bringing with it a whole host of 3D printers and laser cutters in tow.
Conceived by the Loftwork creative agency, FabCafe is inspired by MIT’s Neil Gershenfeld whose ‘FabLab’ (digital fabrication laboratories) concept described places that bring together people, ideas and technology to invent and fabricate things quickly and cheaply.
Hida’s own FabCafe opened in the spring of 2016, in a beautifully renovated old Japanese house (kominka) — a former sake brewery and woodworking studio whose character has been faithfully preserved. It has inherited both the property’s traditional aesthetics and creative DNA, making it a launchpad for local experimenters and hobbyists alike, while offering stays, workshops and training camps — not to mention a great cup of coffee and canelé.
| Hours | 10am–4pm |
|---|---|
| Closed | Wednesdays |
| Wi-Fi | Available |
| Dietary |
 Halal-friendly
|
| Access | A 7-minute walk from Hida-Furukawa Station. |
FabCafe’s concept of bringing tools and community together as one is no longer necessarily cutting edge, with 3D printing certainly more commonplace than it once was. But to see it take shape in Hida Furukawa—the very epitome of craft heritage steeped in woodworking history&mdash...
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