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Creating a Brand Story and casual dining Concept for a new Italian Restaurant all the way from the ground up into a pilot venue
“We wanted the design to carry all the familiar comfort of a classic Italian restaurant, but with a modern twist. We also wanted a create a subtle nod to our identity and heritage as New Yorkers”
Josh Schwartz & Sarissa Rodriguez-Schwartz, Partners SJS Group
SJS Group have a very real claim on the tagline ‘Singapore’s Leading Restaurant, Bar & Nightlife Company’. Partners Joshua Schwartz and Sarissa Rodriguez-Schwartz bring decades of hospitality experience to the brand portfolio, which already contained a plethora of big hits in Singapore – among them Bang Bang , Lulu’s Lounge, Papi’s Tacos, Employee’s Only, Pasta Bar, Burrata Bar, and Bar Milano.
Milano Pizza & Wine is the first iteration of the ‘Milano Collection’ of venues that will share a common design language and branding. The brief was to create an ambience with ‘European sensibility and a nod to modernity’.
Through exploration and research of both past and present variations of the Italian theme, the challenge was to decipher the common elements across brand, identity, finishes and furniture that create a distinctly Italian feel.
What kind of design moves can be employed to ensure that the guest has an experience that really goes beyond the mainstream Italian theme and delivers an ambience that has a truly unique and contemporary identity? How can we create differentiation while retaining congruence?
With the challenges briefed, the design employed the following moves to answer these questions:
– Strong Classical Centerpiece
A custom-made pewter bar top was envisaged to anchor the venue as an eye-catching center-piece. Sourced from a 90 year old company in Europe, it took 3 months to fabricate and deliver to Singapore. There is nothing that more instantly conjures up the mood of the Italian Brasserie than a handmade pewter bar top! The bar setup is completed by simple backbar a surround of tin ceiling to carry the statement.
– Timeless Comfort
The seating booth and banquette are two elements that seem to never go out of fashion. They can always be relied upon to create intimacy and comfort. That said, they can be used in both low-end and high-end settings, and there are 101 ways to detail these built-in components. In this case, the stitching on the cushions and finishes picked can best be described as mid-century – not overly fussy but with enough rhythm, depth and lumbar support to properly reflect the upscale quality of the venue.
– Open Kitchen Concept
The Open Kitchen as a concept originated in New York in the 1950s. Of all the design moves this is the gesture that delivers the essential nod the New York heritage of the Clients. The stainless steel bar top and chairs, together with the subway tiled walls further hammer home the NY ties within this area of the venue
– Frameless Glass Wine Room
Perhaps the most modern architectural element of the whole design is the frameless glass Wine Room. With sharp lines and simple, clean joinery, this piece more than any other catapults the ambience into the present moment. The functional benefit is also the visual promotion of the highly-curated and unique wine collection.
– Bright Accent Colors
As well as forming a base for much of the printed brand collateral (the menus, logo etc) the color Pink is used as an accent color throughout various finishes, furniture and decorative pieces. A soft pink is used throughout the wall sections, the marble in the booths, as well as a 2-tone gradient wallpaper, while pink bar stools and lampshades were custom-fabricated and shipped from overseas. A strong Mint Green finish is employed on the tubular metal chairs in the dining room, and also applied in a patina fashion to the legs of the custom-made Oak farm table opposite the Wine Room.
– Quirky Playful Touches
The final essential ingredient in completing the differentiation away from the mainstream Italian category was the series of fun, playful decorative elements. The Clients themselves must take full credit for their selection of paintings (their own pet Dog in Napoleonic uniform!), the drunk flamingo, and the rotating phrases applied to the antique mirror. All of these final touches bring out identity and character of the venue wonderfully.
Given the level of finish achieved, and the price point of the F&B, the cost psf for interior fit-out for this project achieved good value. There was a willingness to spend on customized furniture in order to deliver a truly one-of-a-kind venue, while the joinery designs and flooring were kept relatively simple, and adapted to meet VE goals as and when required. The design also worked largely within the confines of the existing AC provision, the only addition being a single extra cassette for the Wine Room.
From Inception to Completion was approximately 8 months. The on-site fit-out spanned the final 2 months of this period. Given the ongoing problematic state of the global supply chain, a span of time was needed in order to source custom-built furniture from Thailand and Indonesia, and a pewter bar counter all the way from France. Starting early on the Design also allowed for time to explore multiple variations on color themes and cast the net far and wide for suppliers. This really was the ‘right way’… if only more projects were run like this!
Due to the relatively long timetable for Design prior to construction, all of the big logistical design challenges (e.g creating a level floor throughout) were able to be overcome ahead of time. Likewise with the budget, a couple of rounds of VE allowed for the necessary tweaks that allowed rebalancing of the budget but did not back the clients into corners where the compromise was unacceptable. No more than a couple of hairy moments – with regard to curved joinery requirements – were overcome onsite through timely inspections and active collaboration by all parties onsite.
“Hey guys, just wanted to let you know we finally had the opening soft launch yesterday and the room looked AMAZING!! Thanks so much for all the hard work, creative play, and rolling with the punches. We are super happy with the outcome!”
Josh Schwartz & Sarissa Rodriguez-Schwartz, Partners SJS Group
