CASE STUDY
Working with constraints Located in a 1990s building, the restaurant originally featured a fragmented layout, where the dining room, bar, and mezzanines coexisted without clear cohesion. From the earliest site visits, a major constraint became evident: a granite core housing an emergency staircase divided the space, disrupting continuity. As an immovable element, it had to be integrated into the design.
“ The essence of the project begins with the plan,” explains designer Cléo Katcho.“ Faced with this central mass, we had to rethink how to structure the space to ensure clarity and continuity, transforming a major constraint into an organizing element.”
The project took shape around a defining move: extending the restaurant into the building’ s lobby to create a lounge and bar area seamlessly connected to the main space. Initially perceived as a risk, this intervention became the project’ s key organizing strategy. By expanding into this semi-public zone, the team redefined thresholds between interior and exterior, while establishing a visible presence from the street.
Re-centering the experience Relocating the bar to the ground floor fundamentally transforms the dynamics of the space. Previously isolated on a mezzanine, it now occupies a central position, acting as both a passage point and gathering space.
“ We want guests to feel the atmosphere from the moment they arrive,” notes the designer.“ The bar now stands as a structuring element around which the entire restaurant experience is organized.”
Around the central core, spaces unfold in a continuous sequence between the lounge, bar, and dining area. The consolidation of two mezzanines into a single level reinforces this coherence. Where the previous configuration fragmented the experience, the new mezzanine, open to the ground floor, maintains constant visual connections between levels.
This pursuit of continuity is also reflected in the treatment of views. From the staircase, sightlines
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