It’s one of those exceptionally glorious Saturday mornings along the shores of Lake Zürich that fills you with happy thoughts, optimism and plenty of ideas that require short- to midterm action. You likely have your own version of snow-capped Alpine peaks framed by an endless sunny sky, gardens of coral peonies, joggers and octogenarians who all say good morning (actually “Morge mitenand”), happy mallards doing duck stuff and the fresh smells of the lake, cut grass and jasmine. On days like this there are various morning circuits that mix meadow, forest, shoreline and the village. There might be a coffee stop, perhaps a meeting, a spin around the grocery store and, in today’s case, a very long lunch at the Badi (local bathing club) and some towel time on the lawn with the weekend papers.

As we set to work on our July/August quality-of-life issue, I find myself asking what it takes to create a functioning community where small businesses thrive, people smile and the mood is bubbly and buoyant? On my way back from the village centre, I walk past people cleaning their cars, trimming back ivy, pushing prams or hustling to the train station, and I am left wondering if any institutions have come up with a formula that accounts for scent and public safety, perfect pavements and polite salutations?

For nearly two decades, we’ve been working on metrics that measure some of these essential elements of a pleasant life, which in big global cities become diluted as the focus shifts to airport connectivity, bigger security issues and the quality of medical care. Do you ever ponder what gives you an added spring in your step when you walk, cycle or drive to the shops? When you venture out for your evening run? Or do you have a shortlist of what could elevate your mood or what living in another neighbourhood might feel like? If you do, I’m most keen to hear as we’re setting to work on a little idea for the forthcoming issue. As ever, you can drop me a note at tb@monocle.com. In the meantime, here are a few life improvement starters from a morning stride around my patch.

1.   
It really does take a village. Whether it’s 1,500 people in a stand-alone stretch of wilderness or an urban village of 25,000 in an Asian megacity, you need a collection of shops, services, sole operators and F&B purveyors to allow people to gather from early till late. And no, it doesn’t need to be all cobble lanes and stripy awnings, a well-managed and designed community mall can also do the trick.

2.   
A thrice-weekly market creates a sense of occasion and a reason for people to break with routines while bringing in some different produce and points of interaction.

3.   
A kiosk with good print is more necessary than ever. If there can be a jolt of coffee on the side, then yes please. Sadly our daily printed newspaper habits are evaporating but there’s still room for bountiful weekend reads – we just need places to buy such titles.

4.   
Flowers, branches and neatly trimmed trees in abundance. Every village must have a seven-day-a-week flower shop for greenery and blossoms for all occasions.

5.   
Recognition is important. Knowing your wine merchant is helpful not only when planning a dinner party but it also helps if you need to leave your keys for a visiting relative to pick up. It also means that they’ll know where to go when they need to leave that “thank you bottle” for their stay.

6.   
A place to stretch out, plunge and do very little. Be it a pool, some grass beside a bathing pond or a rocky beach beside the marina, life is better when you can be surrounded by well-mannered locals (visitors too) who know the codes and want little more than sun, a cold beer or rosé from a small bar and a few seats for lingering into the evening.

7.   
An attentive mayor and team with their eyes on the details. For example, some arseholes sprayed nonsense tags in the passage under the rail tracks and I was happy to see that within a few days it had been removed and all looked as good as new.

8.   
Good pavements that leave space for walkers, bikes and also cars. Villages don’t need to be for pedestrians only. I am a firm believer that passing traffic, wheeled and otherwise, keeps a community interesting.

9.   
Warm, golden, dimmed street lamps. Cold LEDs are a mood killer for all – insects and birds included.

10.
Finally, a good bookshop for readings, signings, stimulation and gift-buying. Independent is great but a good chain can often be just as good. Be content to embrace anyone prepared to sell fine print.

Enjoying life in ‘The Faster Lane’? Click here to browse all of Tyler’s past columns.

London’s coffee culture has undergone a radical shift in the last decade – and it owes much of that to Antipodean roastery Allpress (writes Divya Venkataraman). “The perception of London’s coffee culture as subpar is an outdated one,” says Allpress managing director Agnes Potter, who was part of bringing the Kiwi roastery, founded in 1989 in an Auckland caravan, to the UK more than 10 years ago. Now the brand supplies more than 2,500 hotels and cafés worldwide and operates outposts across New Zealand, Australia, Japan, Singapore and the UK.

Allpress’s wholesale business represents about 80 per cent of its sales but its cafés are its soul. Its newest is a light space in Farringdon’s Smithfield Market. “Our cafés are a better branding exercise than anything that we could put on social media,” says Potter as Monocle sips a well-rounded oat flat white. “People get to be a part of it here.” For Potter, it’s important to consider local nuances – Japanese locations cater to a crowd that prefers to caffeinate later, for example. But Allpress ultimately wants to export the Kiwi style of hospitality around the world. “It’s what feels natural to us: casual, and friendly but not overfamiliar.” 
allpress.com

Monocle’s London City Guide is full of recommendations for the best hotels, restaurants and galleries in the UK capital.

Elina Drake is the programme director of Riga Art Week, which returns for its second edition tomorrow, and co-founder of Galerija Asni, a contemporary space championing young Latvian artists at home and abroad (writes Ilze Vitola). Here she chats to us about her favourite pastrami sandwiches, easy spring menu and Latvian art recommendations.

What do we find you doing this weekend?
It’s Riga Art Week. But in the lead-up to the event, I have been presenting Latvian artists Uģis Albiņš and Jānis Dzirnieks at Art Warsaw. It’s the region’s main fair and a creative meeting point.

Where do you go for your caffeine fix?
It’s probably controversial to say this but I’m not a big coffee person – one home-brewed cup does it. For everything else, Kalve next door to my gallery is the spot: it has a good atmosphere, minimalist design, nice crowd and excellent pastrami sandwiches.

What’s for breakfast?
A soft omelette, avocado, ciabatta and fresh Latvian cottage cheese.

A Sunday soundtrack?
System Olympia’s ‘6am Romance’. It has dreamy synths and raw rhythms inspired by erotic literature, night drives and dance-floor romance. It’s a very sexy track.

Sunday culture must?
The Latvian National Museum of Art is a classic. I follow it up with a quick stop at Galerija Asni, which happens to be just across the street. The Latvian Centre for Contemporary Art is a solid option too.

What’s on the menu?
In spring I could happily eat the same thing every day: tuna, quail eggs, young potatoes, fresh lettuce, cucumber and a generous glug of good olive oil.

Which brands does your wardrobe currently consist of?
Mostly Ganni and Nanushka, plus some playful Bimba y Lola items.

Next on the travel itinerary?
Zürich for a friend’s graduation, then hopefully somewhere with a slower pace of life.

Yuzu kosho is a fermented Japanese condiment from the Kyushu region, a fragrant, salty-spicy paste made from chilli peppers, the zest of yuzu and salt. Here, Monocle’s Japanese chef incorporates the paste into a classic chicken sando.

Serves 2

Ingredients
2 chicken thighs (approx 500g)
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
Large pinch sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper
½ tbsp olive oil
3 tbsps mayonnaise
1 tsp yuzu kosho paste
1 shallot (or ¼ red onion)
4 frilled lettuce leaves
4 slices of bread

Method

1.
If using bone-in chicken thighs, remove the bones and trim excess fat, keeping the skin on. Flatten the meat so that it cooks evenly.

2.
Place the chicken in a bowl with the finely chopped garlic cloves, sea salt, freshly ground black pepper and olive oil. Toss to coat evenly and leave to marinate for at least 30 minutes.

3.
Mix the mayonnaise and yuzu kosho paste in a small bowl, using a rubber spatula to smooth out the yuzu kosho until completely combined.

4.
Slice the shallot paper-thin and submerge it in a bowl of ice water along with the frilled lettuce leaves. This keeps everything crisp.

5.
Place the chicken skin-side down in a cold pan, pressing to flatten. Turn the heat to medium and, once it starts to sizzle, cook for 10 minutes until the skin is golden and crispy. Give it a couple of extra minutes if the skin still feels soft. Flip and cook for another 5 minutes or until cooked through, then rest for a couple of minutes.

6.
Drain the lettuce and shallots, and pat thoroughly dry.

7.
Toast the bread. Spread two-thirds of the yuzu kosho mayo across all four slices. Arrange the chicken on two of the slices, spread the remaining mayo over the chicken and top with the lettuce and shallots. Close with the remaining bread, cut each sando in half and serve.

For a design practice, the leap into hospitality is a sure barometer of success (writes Annick Weber). “You get to dream up all the touchpoints: from branding and furniture design to the overall experience,” says Bernardo Dominguez of New York- and Mexico City-based Studio Savvy, which first tested the waters by renting out three modest bedrooms above its creative hub in the well-heeled Roma Norte neighbourhood. But when two former family homes came up for sale, the team’s ambitions grew.

Dominguez and his business partner, Rafael Prieto, spent two years restoring the buildings’ crumbling period charm – think Juliet windows, intricate wooden parquets and a lush, tropical garden patio. They added 10 bedrooms and a chic café and bar, Ideal, which serves pastries by the city’s fêted Panadería Rosetta and Austrian comfort food courtesy of Egyptian culinary artist Laila Gohar. 

The firm designed most of the furniture in-house or in collaboration with its large creative network. There are eclectic photographic wallpapers featuring Greco-Roman motifs, as well as sculptural lighting by New York-based Marrow Project and rugs from Prieto’s forthcoming collection with British designer Christopher Farr. The result feels more like the theatrical home of a collector than a hotel.
casabosquespension.com

You can read more about Mexico’s most exciting businesses and outposts of opportunity here.

For Vermont-based Jake Hutchins, springtime is when he and his partner Sorrel Watson collect the sap from their 13,000 maple trees and start the boiling process that turns it into syrup (writes Amy van den Berg).