When it comes to Steampunk, you could almost say all bets are off, regarding design and style.
YET, I consider that it’s important to try to adhere to a specific artistic/industrial trend or Era (s). To obtain that is, some measure of uniformity in design elements.
Throughout my previous experience of developing other Steampunk Design Concepts, I have arrived over time, to a personal conclusion. That Steampunk is a mix of mostly two things:

1. The Old West (Spaghetti Western style).
2. The Victorian Era (both the excess in plush design and the Industrial Revolution).

*I myself like to add a few drops of Art Deco into the mix.
I see a lot of people out there producing Steampunk design with strong Gothic elements, but to me that just throws the whole thing in a “Dawn of the Dead” direction. Including some Gore elements I find unnecessary if not disturbing.Two examples of my previous work with Steampunk can be seen in my 3D Illustration section on this website (scroll down to the 4th and 5th lines for a Steampunk Ipod and a Steampunk Star Wars AT-AT concept).
Now, regarding this project, which is a concept design for an actual REAL LIFE Steampunk Cafe a client of mine wants to build. What you see here, is a first stage of that process. We decided to start with furniture. Custom built. You can make out four main sections, which are:

1. The Bar/Counter.
2. Booths.
3. Tables with chairs.
4. Lounge/VIP area (also stage for live music).As I said, this is a first stage. Where we also wanted to start on the uniforms for waiters/waitresses, and other staff members.

What I decided on for style then, was a simplified Victorian style for furniture. If you look up Steampunk furniture, you will see a LOT of Victorian design. And sometimes, a lot of things with pipes and pressure valves and gauges.

I also had to keep in mind, that it should be something easy to build (or at least not too difficult) specially in mass production, and not too expensive.
It had to give a sense of style. Simple lines. Classy.The color palette is not final, and will be part of the process of choosing the right way to go with all of this.
I’m very exited! It’s not every day you get a chance to work on a Steampunk concept design project for an actual real life build. With commercial intentions!
For now, these are the results. What do you think? I would love to know your opinions, specially if you are a Steampunk geek like me!