The RED Room | Kyle MertensMeyer

“Just as the menu is full of flavor, the design must provide a multi-layered feast for the senses.” 

“Brunch With” is an inspiring story about a young entrepreneurial client who wanted to make a splash with her third restaurant, this time in Suzhou. Stating to the design team; “Just as the menu is full of flavor, the design must provide a multi-layered feast for the senses.” The multiplicity of colors is paired with intended functions, such as crafting cocktails & coffee at the bar, gazing out through the lounge, laughing with friends in baking class, hosting a party in the private room, or sharing a dish with a loved one in the formal dining room. Guests can explore one or all experiences during a single visit, losing their sense of time while sharing these joyful moments with friends and family.

The spaces of the restaurant are shaped to reveal surprising moments at specific points along the central spine of the restaurant flanked by the bakery and kitchen. Each moment engages the patrons and encourages further exploration as they move through the restaurant’s 472 m2 space. Forms of colored glass, terrazzo, and stainless steel acts as a filter between dream and reality, shifting the view from the streets of Suzhou into a colorful, elevated, floating lounge room, perfect for picture moments and people watching. Stainless steel Colors and details give homage to the diners of 1950s creating a beautiful juxtaposition, which we call “futurist nostalgia”. 

Drawing on Experiences: Our client's love for food, travel, and fashion inspired many references she wished to see coming to life in her restaurant. The design team translated each memory or photo into an idea or space. Two key themes came out of the client’s photo references of progressive fashion and vintage 1950s spaces. The design team was excited about the idea of a futuristic and fashion-inspired restaurant with a hint of vintage diner appeal.

Extensive Customer Journey and Program: Our Client's objective is to connect with her patrons through a colorful and creative customer experience combining food, drink, and spatial design that allows guests to have a unique experience during every visit. This 472 meter-squared space supports: coffee/cocktail bar, a lounge for bunch during the day and cocktails at night, baking classroom, full bakery, full kitchen, two private function rooms, and formal dining room; all spaces are laid out so that patrons could interact with different elements as they moved through the restaurant.

Push the Boundaries: The largest project challenge was finding an experienced construction team in Suzhou, China. The design team and client interviewed 12 construction companies to select one. The design team followed the construction closely with numerous supplementary detail drawings, on-site sketches, material tests, and color samples for the terrazzo tile used in the project. To achieve the desired result, the client and design team worked to select the materials together since it was beyond the capability of the construction team.

To maximize the efficiency of the 472 meter-squared space, we overlaid functions to support a robust program of coffee/cocktail bar, a lounge for bunch during the day and cocktails at night, a baking classroom which can convert into a private dining room, full bakery, full kitchen, two private function rooms, and a formal dining room; all spaces are laid out so that patrons could interact with different elements as they moved through the restaurant. In addition to design, we worked closely with the client to push the boundaries, interviewing 12 construction companies and following the construction closely. The design team supplied numerous supplementary detail drawings, on-site sketches, and material tests; even traveling to source much of the materials by hand to achieve the desired results.