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the impetuous gaze of our clever chef fixes the beady scowled eyes of
the discombobulated thief. Before the tings of clinking change had the
chance to fade away, our failed scoundrel ran off. Content that he had
foiled this petty crime and most certainly avoided grave bodily harm,
the chef turned and bent down to pick up the dated coins only to
find that they had magically become part of the establishment’s floor.
Quizzically looking around our chef saw the owner approaching. He
was asked if he needed help and if he was the person coming to see
about purchasing this local eatery. When the chef answered yes, the
owner began to explain the history of the place. But with complete
conviction in his voice our chef cut him off mid-sentence saying « pas
besoin de m’expliquer... je le prends tel quel; et surtout ne toucher à
rien! » And so inspired by the curiousness of the event and happy to
have escaped with his life, the chef re-baptized the bistro: La Bourse et
La Vie - Your Money and Your Life.’
The nature of the bistrot is closer to the mise en valeur and assemblage
of known processes and products than the creation of a new culinary
expression. Thus, the esprit of the interiors proposed for La Bourse
et La Vie turns more around the orchestration of various trouvailles
or found objects than the imposition of a homogenous and perhaps
abstract novel interior design concept.
The process began by the chef’s decision to conserve the existing
name, but with a slight meaningful adjustment, and to conserve the
existing mirrored and molded
wood interior. With that as
the recipe the interiors of the
project became an assemblage
of details from the codes of
traditional bistros. The details
used were: the voilage at the
vitrine to provide intimacy from
the street and to help forget
the day; a velour entry curtain
rendered in blue as a reference
to the blue of Chicago; globe
light fixtures, from Gino Sarfati
designed in1965 and found at
the Gallery Kreo in Paris; a central
ceiling fixture, here treated a
plat as if the hanging object had
been recessed into the ceiling; the comptoir with a zinc countertop
and stained oak skirting, all expressed with a contemporary simplified
line that speaks primarily about its form and function; the ardoise
for the daily specials; the mirror at the vitrine banquet to see your
guest arrive before they see you; the open glass cabinet for digestifs;
the oak tables with a modern thin brass pinstripe that prevents the
wood edges from wear while also referencing traditional bistro tables
with their brass cerclage; the aged oak floor with a brass frame and a
resin cement border that is carried through from the kitchen; and the
traditional bistro chairs which were found at a brocante in Lille. The
only truly contemporary creation is seen in two wall textured inserts
placed where two mirrors once sat in former times. Taking cues from
aged mirrors but also evoking 18th century pittoresque scenes, these
two original works were realized by the decorative painting company
Fresco of New York. The color for the wood interior and the graphite
and gold rechampie were executed by AC Matières Paris.
“A bistro is abou t a narrative, a process rather than an idea.” – Elliott
Barnes
Through the orchestration of traditional details, techniques, and
contemporary interpretations, and by juxtaposing modern and
traditional objects, La Bourse et La Vie maintains its position as a true
‘bistro du quartier’.