The Morning Coffee Nook: Turning a Small Patio Into Your Favorite Room
Small-space ideas · Published by Outdoor Nook, which makes and sells the recliners shown
The room you use most might be outside the back door. A small patio with a real recliner, a table for your mug and a cover that lives on the chair can become your favorite place for morning coffee, a chapter of a book and an afternoon nap. Here is how owners set theirs up, and what makes it feel as comfortable as indoors.
It is part of our Small Patios & Balconies guide.
“our porch, which is now our second living room”
That phrase comes up again and again. In our reviews, 35 mention enjoying the chairs as a couple, 28 mention napping, 23 compare them to a living-room recliner, 11 mention reading and 10 mention morning coffee. A small patio is enough for all of it.
1. Start with a chair you'd want indoors
A coffee nook only becomes a habit if the seat is the most comfortable one you own. Our recliners swivel 360 degrees, glide front to back and recline with the footrest out, like the recliner in your den. Cushions are high-resilience foam.
Fit matters more than looks. Seat depth runs from 18.9 inches on the Keywest and Malibu II to 22.8 inches on the Kiesta, so shorter sitters often prefer the wicker models. One honest note from an owner:
“Know that they are big… my feet don't touch the floor”
Some owners like them so much they bring them inside:
“Using them in living room!”
We design these for outdoor use, and indoor use is not covered by our warranty.
2. Give the coffee somewhere to land
A mug on the floor is how a nook gets abandoned. A side table at arm height fixes that. The Keywest, Newport and Malibu II wicker side tables are 18 × 18 inches and 20 inches tall. The Huntington aluminum table is 20.5 inches square. Each is $269.
Want music with the coffee? The Wosaic side table adds a Bluetooth 5.0 speaker and USB-A and USB-C charging ports, with a 12,000 mAh battery rated for up to a week of use and an IP65 water-resistant rating. The Keywest Wosaic side table is $699, or $2,407 as a Keywest Speaker Bistro Set with two recliners.
“a perfect fit between our chairs”
Why a reclining bistro set over café chairs? Our post on comfortable bistro sets makes the case.
3. Make room for two
Morning coffee is better with company, and couples are the biggest group in our reviews. Because the chairs swivel, two of them can turn in to face each other over coffee, then turn back to the garden or the view without being moved.
“doesn't every sunroom deserve a matching pair of recliners!”
Short on width? Two Keywest recliners with the table between them take about 73.1 inches, computed from the size charts. Our small balcony ideas: 6 setups for two recliners and a table shows other ways to arrange a pair.
4. Plan for the nap
Twenty-eight reviews mention napping, which tells you how these chairs end up being used by early afternoon. The recliner has a single, full-recline position, so plan for the longest footprint: 64.5–67 inches front to back, depending on the model.
Keep that zone clear of planters and the top step, and remember that only one adult should sit in a recliner at a time. Our 5 rules for fitting outdoor recliners walks through the measuring.
5. Let the built-in cover do the tidying
Nothing kills a morning ritual like wiping pollen off the cushions first. Each recliner has a patent-pending all-weather cover hidden in the chair back. It pulls over the cushions in seconds to shield them from rain, harsh sun and debris, and there is no separate cover to buy or store.
Covers are praised in 110 of our reviews, about 17%. Several owners keep them on in pollen season so the seat is clean when they sit down.
“No longer do I have to have extra storage just to keep covers”
It is not perfect in every condition, and one owner told us so:
“The covers don't sync tight enough to stay on in wind”
Fair point. On a windy balcony, or when heavy rain or severe weather is coming, bring the cushions indoors. It also helps them last longer.
6. Finish the room: light, plants and a rug
We only make the seating, so treat these as styling ideas rather than product advice. They are what turns a patio corner into a room.
- Soft light. A lantern or warm string lights make the nook work after sunset too, and a reading light helps with that chapter.
- A few plants. Potted herbs or a planter by the railing give the space walls. On a balcony, check your HOA or building rules on weight first.
- An outdoor rug. It defines the room and warms bare concrete under bare feet.
- A throw for cool mornings. Keep it indoors overnight with the cushions.
- A clear path. Keep about 3 ft free to the door. That is our rule of thumb, not a spec.
For bigger ideas, read 5 ways homeowners turn a patio into a second living room.
Good to know before you order
- Delivery is free. Orders are processed and handed to FedEx within 1–2 business days, then FedEx transit typically takes 5–8 business days to the 48 contiguous states. Delivery is to your doorstep or curbside, and each recliner ships in its own box. Assembly is minimal and needs no tools.
- You get a 14-day return window. Return an item in clean, original condition within 14 days of delivery for a full refund. After that, returns are accepted up to 90 days with a 20% restocking fee. See our returns policy.
- The frame carries a 5-year limited warranty and the cushions 2 years, against defects in materials and workmanship, for the original buyer. Read the full warranty.
Choose your recliner
Pick the chair you'd want for your first cup of the day.
Questions before you order? Call 1-800-296-0232 or email cs@outdoornook.com.
Quick answers
What size side table fits between two recliners?
Do I need to store a separate cover?
Can I nap in it?
Does the speaker table need an outlet?
Sources. Reviews: REVIEWS.io, 654 product and company reviews, retrieved October 2026, quoted as written; excerpts are marked. Widths and depths are computed from the size charts on our product pages and are estimates, not specs. Prices and specifications are from our product pages as of October 2026.
