Maxis and EA Games have been bringing new packs to The Sims 4 since 2014, and until the impending official release of The Sims 5, they show no sign of slowing down. The latest packs, the “Cozy Bistro Kit” and “Riviera Retreat Kit”, add new furniture and design options to adorn your Sim worlds with new relaxing and social entertainment areas.

The Cozy Bistro Kit (or cosy if you’re an Aussie) contains a collection of Build Items for those restaurateurs looking to set their sims up for a romantic evening on the town, a cheeky bevvy or a lovely brunch. Serving great “Nectar” meals and coffee, the possibilities for creating your beautiful little hangout are reasonable. Still, they can be quite limiting in styling potential.

The 27 Items included in the pack fit into a classy theme: wood-panelled wallpapers, classy flooring, classically inspired furniture, and vintage artwork. There are 12 tiling variations and 16 wall swatches with half-wall wood panelling and various wallpaper colours. Still, they mostly fit into a particular, warm, traditional style. The wall and flooring choices were pretty locked into one specific era, with the twirly wall patterns and geometric diamond floors based on their design. The bistro doors and windows zhuzh up the foundations a bit more.

Furniture has a smidge more potential. I found the best way to get the most use out of the pack was to try to play with colour schemes; going whites and pinks took it to a more cutesy diner rather than a sophisticated dining establishment, and other colourways could make it feel more like a coffee shop or perhaps an Italian eatery.

There are ways to work with it, and with existing build items, especially for those with many packs at their disposal, there’s much more to play with. I had fun with the artwork and signage, inspiring me to make a speakeasy and jazz bar. The awnings, in particular, were often the inspiration for all my interior designs.

Of the 26 furniture items, some were versatile. A select few items, such as the Trattoria bar stool and bar furnishings with their antique flair, didn’t have much reusability for different stylings. Some items, like awnings and signage, felt more interchangeable; specific signage was evident in the font and colourings, even in Simlish, the kind of foods it represented, like a bakery or cafe. Regarding further decor and food-related implements, it’s mostly BYO food and drink implements, save for a bottle of booze. While there’s a lovely retro coffee machine with various swatches, no mugs or other foodie items are in the set. The Cosy Bistro kit has a reasonable amount of content for very particular dining aesthetics, but with a variety of pre-existing Build Items to use, it’s not too hard to make it your own foodie heaven.

The Riviera Retreat Kit contains items perfect for a getaway with new ways to jazz up a resort pool area. The 26 items include a rock cascading water feature, a vine-covered/or curtain-adorned pergola, a fire pit, a selection of dining and deckchairs, and other scenery dressers. Included in those items are wall tiles and cobblestone with 12 colourways and matching flooring options, and ways to enhance the pool like edging, lighting and new ladders; nothing says getaway like a good poolside than some deckchairs and well-planned landscaping.

The overall style fits into classical Mediterranean / European resort stylings; it goes excellent with some natural sandstone tiling, walls, and earthy tones. I found the colour scheme underwhelming, staying generally within the brown tones.

The most vivid thing in the pack is the “Essence of Bergamont” Planter, a lovely little tree in a pot with a few more colour options and an aqueduct fountain. I could have used more items for a resort-style pack, but it was significantly limited to one theme.

Both have consistent styles but at a cost, with minimal design direction, unless you get creative with your pre-existing assets. For those who enjoy some eclectic stylings and fusing items of the base game, expansions and kits, the content may have more value. Keep in mind, The Sims 4 base game is completely free, so possibly, paying a few bucks for more items to play with is a worthwhile

While the ever-expanding catalogue of items and content in The Sims 4 is impressive, there’s much quantity over quality. For those keen to sink a decent chunk of time into the design aspects of The Sims, there are definitely a few good hours worth of experimentation in the Cozy Bistro and Riviera Retreat sets to keep them going for more casual Simmers.

They aren’t going to make or break your experience; maybe just give you a little bit more to work with. I’m not much for interior design; I’m more there for causing chaos amongst my Sims. However, some nice decor would enhance a good bit of drama during an Air B&B Stay or a night on the town.

Written by: Yasmin Noble