I love working on Restaurant design. You normally have more freedom to be creative, resulting in original work. Below are some I have worked on.
Soto Japanese Garden Restaurant
Soto is in a wonderful converted brick fire station in Ponsonby, Auckland. One of my major contributions was to design wall panels with a woven pattern, lit from behind, creating a sort of back-lit basket like effect. There are various other Bambusero elements in the restaurant, including a sculpture, artwork, lighting and ceiling linings. By the way, they have fantastic Japanese food, cooked by their chef, Makoto.
Kura Japanese Bar
I built this recreation of a bamboo grove at the entrance of the Basement Kura Japanese Bar. it's very dramatic yet inviting.
Mexicali-Fresh restaurant
Some simple rustic Mexican-style pergola roofs. I pre-made these so one end could be easily attached to the walls of the restaurant, and the other suspended from the ceiling. This gives maximum circulation underneath since there are no columns.
Neil's place
A good client of mine, Neil, came to me wanting a divider between a low, sunken sitting area and the rest of his living room. But not something which totally closed it off. The same went for the dining area - a feeling of being enclosed, but allowing light and air to pass. These vertical bamboo poles were installed in situ with a specially made macrocarpa frame.
Shop window
A sculptural bamboo element as a backdrop to a clothing display.
