In the early 1990s, following his graduation from Rice University’s School of Architecture and a stint at Ricardo Bofill’s office in Barcelona, Eduardo Aizenman returned to Mexico City, which still had not recovered from the devastation of the 1985 earthquake. Wanting to create community, breathe new life into the city, and just have a place to hang out, Aizenman and his friends conceived a bookstore-café (or Cafebrería) in the historic Condesa neighborhood, which had been particularly hard hit. The move helped fuel a local renaissance and, over the years, the partners brought their Cafebrería El Péndulo concept to various precincts, with Aizenman designing unique bookstore- cafés for each location.