PHOTOS BY Gonzalo Gutiérrez Araújo

PHOTOS BY Gonzalo Gutiérrez Araújo

PHOTOS BY Gonzalo Gutiérrez Araújo

After refurbishing its main restaurant, Santiago Domínguez trusted our architectural studio once again to refurbish another restaurant he owned. Previously it had been dedicated to being an oyster bar, but Santiago asked us to reconfigure it to accommodate a more functional restaurant, with a larger kitchen in which to prepare more elaborate meals.

The façade has been completely modified, maintaining only part of the wood mouldings of the original piece. The openings in the façade have been enlarged and the original wooden carpentries have been replaced by much thinner metal profiles with the aim of introducing as much light as possible into the interior. The interior of the restaurant can be seen entirety from the street. The original luminous sign has been replaced by a much more attractive one. The restaurant becomes more present for pedestrians. The luminous sign acquires a special dimension as it is the most characteristic element of the façade, inviting passers-by to approach the restaurant.

PHOTOS BY Gonzalo Gutiérrez Araújo

PHOTOS BY Gonzalo Gutiérrez Araújo

PHOTOS BY Gonzalo Gutiérrez Araújo

There is a vegetable mass in front of the restaurant that protects it and gives more privacy when using the terrace part. Lacking a front view from the busiest area, a double orientation has been sought for the façade. This double orientation is achieved thanks to the luminous sign, which acts as a reclamation to both senses, on one hand the adjacent park and on the other the promenade
The only limitation Santiago demanded us was to conserve the marble floor and the wood carpentry work that the original restaurant had. This included all the panelling and mouldings of the walls, pillars, façade and bar. All these elements were restored, painted or replaced following the original pattern.

The plaster ceilings were modified keeping also the original forms and preserving the moldings, but adding acoustic panels and a ceiling of wooden slats that gives a new character to the interior of the restaurant. The new lamps hang from the wooden ceiling.Wood acts as a recurring material throughout the interior of the restaurant, from the floor to the ceiling, passing through the walls, pillars, lamps and even the furniture, which is the original repaired. Different woods are used on each surface. This treatment of materiality makes an interesting game of warm textures, turning the dining room into a cosy contemporary space, in contrast to the appearance of metallic materials and polymers of the façade.

Collaborators: Delfín Gutierrez Martín