Inside the Vogue Café—Where the Pre-Met Gala Buzz Was Fueled All Weekend Long

Reported by Vogue.

The pre-Met energy hit different this year, and Vogue made sure everyone felt it. The magazine's first-ever Manhattan iteration of the Vogue Café — presented by Chase Sapphire Reserve® and planted at 234 Spring Street in SoHo — turned a regular spring weekend into a full-blown cultural moment, drawing lines down the block before the doors even opened.

According to Vogue, editorial director Chloe Malle set the tone early, joking that it took an entire team of editors just to name the drinks menu — think That's All espressos and The Glacial Pace iced coffees. She also framed the weekend within a larger cultural narrative: 2025 is a year loaded with nostalgia, between the ten-year anniversary of The First Monday in May and the long-awaited return of The Devil Wears Prada. Malle compared the electric pre-Gala city mood to the legendary Fashion Night Out era — and honestly, she wasn't wrong.

From Daytime Hang to Neighborhood Bar

Saturday ran the full spectrum. Morning kicked off with a live taping of The Run-Through podcast, featuring designer Tory Burch in conversation with Nicole Phelps — a proper sit-down to anchor the chaos. Through the afternoon, the café operated like an ideal weekend destination: dogs, toddlers, friends, a build-your-own charm bar courtesy of Brooklyn jewelry label Don't Let Disco, and customized totes by Alex Mill. Waitstaff in Tanner Fletcher striped aprons kept the coffee flowing while navy DOGUE caps flew off the merch table. By evening, the space pivoted — aperitifs, DJ Nikki Kynard on the decks, food by Altro Paradiso, and a guest list that included Grace Gummer, Coco Jones, Alex Consani, and Tommy Dorfman. Party favor bags stuffed with product from Flamingo Estate, Jennifer Fisher, Emi Jay, and Maison Louis Marie — plus the new issue — sent everyone home happy.

Sunday slowed things down in the best way. Malle and Vogue contributing editor Lilah Ramzi hosted a screening of The First Monday in May, complete with treats from Hani's Bakery. The documentary's producer, Fabiola Beracasa Beckman, was in attendance and received a genuine round of applause when the credits rolled — a reminder that fashion still has the power to create real, room-filling feeling. Both Malle and Ramzi noted that they appear briefly in the 2014 footage, which added a quietly full-circle dimension to the whole weekend.

The Café stayed open through Monday, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., giving one last window for anyone who needed their Met Gala warm-up — because the best fashion weeks don't start on the red carpet, they start in the streets the days before.

Read the original at Vogue.