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Updated on Aug 18, 2025
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Behind the Brew: Philippe Heim of Céleste in Vevey
I met Philippe at his cafe Céleste in Vevey on a beautiful sunny day, perfect for settling onto the terrace while sipping a fruity espresso that perfectly captured the first days of summer. Tucked away from the main lakeside promenade, Céleste represents a new type of hospitality concept in this charming city. When Philippe discovered the space in mid-2022, he felt an immediate connection. “I fell in love when I discovered this place,” he says, joining me at one of the terrace tables. “I felt really very well here, actually.”
Philippe’s journey to opening Céleste in November 2022 began with a vision for something entirely different. Originally searching for a location between Vevey and Lausanne to open a wine bar, his plans shifted when he encountered this particular venue. It had previously operated as a small café and after conversations with neighbors and learning about the neighborhood’s character, Philippe realized the space called for something more versatile…
How did you end up working in hospitality?
I went to hotel management school, so I’m from the industry and I always worked in restaurants, bistros, bars, coffee shops. I really fell in love with the hospitality industry, and I had the chance to work with very passionate people in all different styles of venues. I also used to manage a cocktail and wine bar in Lausanne, called Le Café des Philosophes.
Tell me about the concept of Céleste. What inspired this all-day approach?
I had the chance to travel a lot during my life and I found really cool venues around the world that were open from 8 to midnight, doing their own baking, their own pastries, roasting their own coffee. I got really inspired by places that were open from morning to evening, doing everything themselves. You could go there at 8 a.m., have a coffee, a croissant, go back for lunchtime, have a plat du jour and then go back in the evening for wine or cocktails. Of course, those places are located in really big cities like Athens, London, Paris, or New York. It’s still a big challenge for me to operate a place like this in a small city like Vevey.
What exactly is Céleste – a café, wine bar, or something else?
I really didn’t think of it all as a concept, but more as a philosophy. Everything that you can try, taste, eat, or drink here is mainly my team’s and my experiences from around here or somewere else in the world. It’s a very personal selection of coffee, wine, and food. We open at 9 a.m. until 10 p.m. in the evening. We’re open all day long and we serve specialty coffee and pastries in the morning, then a small kind of homemade little canteen menu for lunchtime. And in the late afternoon we turn into a wine bar, cocktail bar, and we serve an easy homemade snack to accompany the drinks.
How do you approach coffee at Céleste?
It’s been more than 10 years that I’ve been drinking filter coffee at home. When I started, I was working with Good Life because they’re from Lausanne as well. They’re here since the beginning. They’re a bit like the first specialty coffee roaster in Lausanne, some 10 something years ago. Now I changed to expe because I’m always trying to be happy with what I serve. I get bored very easily by things, so I’m always looking for new things to try, to discover. At the moment we are serving a beautiful coffee from Brazil, and also an Ethiopian coffee. Pretty soon we will also feature our own espresso from Uganda, which will be served with milk mainly.
What brewing methods do you use for filter coffee?
I use either V60 or Origami dripper. I can’t say I’m an expert of filter coffee. I usually use the same recipe all the time. That works quite well. And that’s the only way I do it, actually. I’m quite young in the coffee industry, I would say. I really started from the beginning as soon as I took over Céleste.
How have locals in Vevey responded to specialty coffee?
When I started nearly three years ago, I was doing very precise barista recipes. With espresso drinks or milk drinks, people were not used to the tastes and the size as well. People here like to drink long espresso. During the first three weeks after opening, I think I was changing my recipes and prices every day. Because I really wanted to make the people happy. I had to understand who I had in front of me, trying not to shock the people with my drinks.
Can you recall a moment of adapting to local preferences?
I remember a lady came and she asked for a café au lait. So I was like, OK, I’m going to serve you a latte. Here they like café au lait, and in Switzerland it’s called “Renversé”. It’s basically like a small latte, something in between, something very Swiss, actually. I wanted to serve her a latte instead or a piccolo or something. But she was insisting. Fast forward to today I am actually making so many “Renversés” every day. I came up with a very nice recipe and people love it.
What’s your perspective on Swiss coffee culture?
You can experience pretty bad coffee in Switzerland. Coffee is not always prepared as well as in other places. But it’s been improving significantly over the years. Of course there are amazing coffee shops all over the country, but generally speaking I think we still have a long way to go.
