Zurich, Switzerland – The LIV Hospitality Design Awards is pleased to announce the judging panel of the third edition of the program, celebrating Hospitality Architecture and Design Excellence. The selection of winners and honorable mentions of the award is entrusted to an impressively diverse jury panel of 42 top hospitality design experts from 23 countries.
Jurors include Najee Syriani, Corporate Vice President – Projects at Rotana Hotels; Melissa Messmer, Global Head of Design for InterContinental and Regent Hotels; Antonio Sancho the Business Development Director, Design & Technical EMEA at Radisson Hotel Group, Eelco Böhtlingk, Senior Director, Food & Beverage Development, Americas at Hilton Worldwide, Tina Norden, Partner at Conran and Partners; Bittor Sanchez Monasterio, Global Vice President Design Economy & Midscale Brands at Accor remain part of the jury along with Eric Leong, Vice President – Design & Technical Services at Minor Hotels and Karen Comber, Director of Interior Design at PIF projects – Luxury Hospitality.
Joining the panel for the LIV Awards 2022, Monika Moser, Chief Operating Officer of Campbell House; Luis Galofre, Director of F&B Design & Development for the Caribbean and Latin America region and Marc Ledesma, the Director of F&B Design & Development MEA both working for Marriott International; Ivo Christow, Head of Design, Member of the Management Board at Krucker Partner AG in Switzerland and many more. All members of the grand jury panel can be viewed at livawards.com/jury.
“The 2022 jury was selected with sustainability and innovation in mind, and each member is considered a visionary in their respective field. We are proud to have such an outstanding jury for our 2022 International Design edition,” said Astrid Hébert, founder of the LIV Awards.
The professionals and emerging talents “Architectural Design of the Year” and the “Interior Design of the Year” winners receive the coveted LIV Awards Trophy; their projects are presented to the worldwide audience and published in the annual catalogue.
Registration for the LIV Design Awards is currently open to students and professionals in the fields of hospitality architecture, interior design and guest experience. Submissions will be accepted until January 31st, 2023. For more information, visit livawards.com.
We sat down with Ivo Christow, Head of Design at Krucker Partner AG and a member of the Management Board; an Interior Architecture Firm that specializes in Hotel and Gastronomy design, to talk about the challenges of a career in the hospitality industry, influences, and passions.
Could you tell us a little about your professional journey? Where are you from and when did you discover that you wanted to work in design?
I grew up in a Housing Estate in East Germany. As children, we didn’t have much to play with, so we were forced to be creative. My favourite thing to do was to build small huts in the forest with my friends, which we then furnished in our own way. Maybe this was the starting point of my professional career. I was already an art lover as a child and loved to paint, but I only came to design much later.
When I moved with my family from Leipzig to Munich in 1986, I got to know a completely new world, full of compulsive consumerism and pressure to perform. A world in which you had to learn to assert yourself and prove yourself, or you were left behind. As a teenager, I always dreamed of having my own cool bar and later running a small hotel – to be honest, I still dream of that today. But instead of going to hotel management school, I preferred to study interior design. After graduating, I realized relatively quickly that classic interior design wasn’t enough for me, everything was far too stiff and too oriented toward standards. So I decided to start a second-degree course, which took me to Switzerland in 2003, to Zurich to be precise, because there was a completely new course on offer.
Scenography is a mixture of architecture, interior design, and stage design. It was a kind of fusion of different disciplines, dealing with staging in urban, theatrical, and museum spaces. I was then lucky enough to be able to work in one of the most renowned scenography offices directly after my studies and gain valuable experience. After spending a few years there, I embarked on the path of self-employment, alongside various other stations. In 2018, I received an offer from Krucker Partner to take on a leading role in design and operations, which I gratefully accepted. I’m back in interior design and even if I don’t own a bar or hotel, at least I get to furnish them. The only difference is that I now incorporate scenography and storytelling into interior design.
Miss Miu, Zug, Switzerland. LIV Award Winner in Interior Design – Restaurant Theme
What is your main priority when starting projects? Is there something that is fundamental to your practice- your philosophy and your process?
This varies greatly from project to project and especially from client to client. I think the most important thing is to understand the clients and exceed their needs or expectations. Many of my clients have understood the importance of offering the guest an experience, and that includes interior design. Instagramability has long become a “must” and one of the best and cheapest ways to advertise. What started with food bloggers continues today in interior design. A well-staged location has become as important today. This works best with storytelling.
When I start a project and have captured ideas and needs from the client, I start writing a story. This can be completely fictional or have references to the location or people. I write a kind of scripts like a film, where 3 factors play an important role: place, time and person. The place describes where I am, for example in which country, which city, at someone’s home, or in a factory. The time tells me when the whole thing took place, so it is current, 20 years ago or a whole century ago. This all has an influence on the design of the space. The third factor is the person, to give the room the necessary personality. The more precisely and excitingly such a script is written, the more suitable it is as a basis for the design of the space.
Nooch, Westside, Bern, Switzerland.
If you had to choose just one of your projects at Krucker Partner, which project would it be and why?
Always the next one. Because honestly, when a project is finished, no matter how great it turned out and how much praise you get, I always only see the little mistakes and what you could have done better. And so for every project, I make a resolution to myself, “You’ll do better next time”. However, I am very satisfied with the projects and I don’t want to single out one that is particularly important to me or that I particularly like, because, in the end, each project stands on its own. Each had different conditions and different challenges and above all, a different budget.
Nooch, Westside, Bern, Switzerland.
Nooch, Westside, Bern, Switzerland.
What do you feel is the most challenging part of working in Hospitality Design today?
Hospitality design is a wonderful field, more versatile than almost any other field in interior design. And the challenges are just as varied. We live in difficult times. Corona, War and Climate change have not been and are not exactly conducive to the hospitality industry. In the current situation, we are faced with many challenges. Be it delivery times or rising prices, the most important thing is to be proactive and remain flexible. We certainly have to learn to rethink our methods in many areas.
Which interior designer most influences your work or your work habits?
My attitude is never to be influenced by anyone else and, to be honest, I don’t know that many interior designers. I have always gone my own way. You are influenced by so many people and experiences throughout your life, which makes you who you are and I am quite happy the way I am. On my path through life, I have met many exciting people, both professionally and privately, who have shaped and influenced me.
The Butcher, Dietlikon, Switzerland.
Last, what are your passions outside of the design world?
Basically, I am interested in many things, but my professional life has had a big influence on my private life. I love to travel and try out as many hotels and restaurants as possible. This has even developed into a real tic. It can happen that I stay in 5-6 different hotels on a seven-day trip, but my greatest passion in life is certainly my wife.
Mrs. Mao Hua is a professional designer with an international vision driven by modernistic design concepts. Combining artistic flexibility and life inspirations, Mao strives to discover a new world of “perfect design”. Her design is characterized by theatrical and dramatic aesthetics, which brings fun and multi-facet experiences to the space, thus enriching one’s spirit with contemplation. We talked to the founder of EK Design and PP Design Gallery/Design Director of YuQiang & Partners Interior Architects Studio to learn more about her background and the inspiration behind her work.
Can you tell us a bit about your background? Where are you from?
I studied and worked in London for four years, during which I met many people from diverse backgrounds and experienced different cultures, which has inspired me a lot. Currently, my design practice is based in Shenzhen, a young, inclusive, and creative city that has incubated many design firms with a global vision.
Dongguan HappyLand Sales Office ©Ingallery
What is your main priority when starting projects?
My priority consideration is to satisfy the client’s needs. Every project has its advantages and disadvantages. When starting a project, my first step is to dig into the client’s background, lifestyle, and deepest needs. Besides, I try to figure out how to maximize the advantages of the space in the simplest way possible, which I think is the key to interior design.
Is there something that is fundamental to your practice, your philosophy and your process?
Interior Design needs to take into account the existing conditions of the architecture and its logical relationship with the outside surroundings. Based on this idea, I then shift to the interior — to figure out how to approach the space and how to express creativity and aesthetics. This is my fundamental design process and approach.
In my design practice, I tend to incorporate a “dramatic” aesthetic to interpret conflicts and contrasts, hoping every spatial scene I conceive will tell a story while presenting contrasts.
Can you tell us more about your new company, EK Design?
To approach more diversified project typologies and create some “different” designs, I established EK Design in 2021. At EK, we have more freedom to fully unleash imagination, and creativity, express different cultures in diversified ways and tend to express “conflicts” and “integration” in design.
Besides interior design, EK’s business scope also involves art, architectural design, product design, graphic design, brand planning, etc. A multidisciplinary team plays a key role at EK. Currently, we have involved architects in our team, and will further bring in landscape designers and product design professionals in the future. In this sense, EK Design has gone beyond interior design.
You also founded the PP Design Gallery in 2010. Can you please share more about this initiative?
The original intention of founding the PP Design Gallery was to support our interior decoration projects. Back then, there was a lack of quality international home furnishing products and relevant purchasing channels in the Chinese market. We hoped to apply more stylish and tasteful products to our projects, to create a more holistic interior decoration effect. This sparked our idea of “looking for good products,” so we established the PP Design Gallery.
It is the first design gallery in southern China that focuses on international modern designs. It’s more like a bridge that introduces creative design brands from around the world to the Chinese design community and the public.
If you had to choose only one project you have been involved in, which one would it be and why?
Recently, we completed an art-filled private penthouse in Zhejiang for a female client who adores fashion and a free lifestyle. She hopes her third residence will be an art space that combines multiple functions, such as a private vacation home, a place to receive and gather guests, and a venue for communication and entertainment.
Zhejiang Private Penthouse © Zhudi SHADØO PLAY
The project is a large single-floor apartment formed by removing the partitions of two existing ones. For this reason, the layout of the new place appeared somewhat rigid, fragmented, and scattered, which posed a challenge for the design. We arranged varied asymmetric and free forms in the space, to divert attention from the spatial structure. For instance, we applied deconstruction methods to add curves to the columns and walls, designed a structural spiral staircase to connect 1F and 2F, and created a large atrium in 2F to bring daylight in.
We recreated the spatial order by various techniques, such as superposition and reorganization. Throughout the project process, we also repeatedly adjusted our design based on balancing aesthetic intuition and model verification. In the end, we created an art-filled private vacation home that went beyond a specific theme and real life.
Zhejiang Private Penthouse © Zhudi SHADØO PLAY
Last, what are you working on at the moment, and do you have any upcoming projects or collaborations you can tell us about?
Currently, we are working on PUER LAB, a tea house located in C Future City, Futian, Shenzhen. In recent years, traditional Chinese culture has been fostering new consumption trends. As PUER LAB is a new type of hospitality project, we intend to adopt fresh forms and fashionable design languages to convey traditional Chinese teahouse culture. EK works on both brand positioning and spatial design for PUER LAB. We utilize traditional Chinese mortise-and-tenon joints to shape spatial structures and, in the meantime, deconstruct and reorganize various geometric forms. Those ingenious and flexible structures link the overall space and create a unique spatial experience. The interior adopts the typical red soil color of Xishuangbanna—the production area of PUER tea, as the main tone. Besides, we reinterpreted the cultural symbols of the famous ancient Chinese painting “Riverside Scene at Qingming Festival” and translated them into a decorative wall painting in the space to produce an aesthetic contrast between tradition and fashion.
We talked to Luis Galofre, Director of Food & Beverage Design and Development for the Caribbean and Latin America region at Marriott International and jury member of the LIV Hospitality Design Awards. Luis brings 17+ years of experience in the F&B industry and his journey has taken him around the world – from managing a top local restaurant to leading an entire region.
Can you tell us a bit about your background? Where are you from? How did you start working in the Hospitality Industry?
I’m from Barranquilla, Colombia, where I lived my first 25 years. I started my career working in various industries, from leather manufacturing to Embassies. My first hospitality job was front desk agent at a local hotel in my hometown and immediately I fall in love with this industry. Later, I worked in multiple departments such as reservations, housekeeping, and banquets.
You worked for some iconic venues like the W Hotel in Washington DC, Buddha Bar DC… How working in Food & Beverages Operations is helping you now as Director of Design & Development at Marriott International?
It’s all about understanding how the Food & Beverage spaces operate. In my 16+ years working in this discipline, I have understood the importance of providing a well-organized space to our associates so they can work efficiently and take great care of our guests. From restaurant and hotel openings to working in high-volume venues, I always looked at operations from the receiving area to the last table/bar stool of our Food & Beverage outlets, and asked the following questions: Do we have an efficient service flow in our BOH? Does storage support a total number of outlets? How many steps is my bartending team taking to make one cocktail? Having the structure defined, then I had to focus on ensuring the restaurant concepts make sense for our guests and associates.
What are the main challenges you are facing, when working on projects in the Caribbean and Latin America in general?
The challenges that this region gives me are unique and exciting! We have 330+ hotels operating and 150+ hotels in the pipeline, in a region that has 33 countries (and dependencies) and each of them comes with its own culinary traditions. This gives us the opportunity to create authentic dishes that truly represent our gastronomy diversity, creating experiences that represent and elevate our brands.
Is there something that is fundamental to your design vision, philosophy and processes?
There are critical steps in the Restaurant and Bar Development Process that build on and depend on each other and it is imperative that each step is completed before moving into the next phase. Analyze, conceptualize, design and execute!
If you have to choose only one project/concept you have been involved in, which one’s would it be and why?
I left Colombia and my Food & Beverage career started… 15 years later, I went back home to open our first Marriott hotel in my hometown Barranquilla, a project that I worked on for about 4 years. The F&B programming designed and created for this hotel was uniquely curated by a local for the locals. Participated in a 10-day countdown where I had the opportunity to share my career path to the associates, and presented the restaurant concept to ensure they live, breathe, and share the storytelling every day. I’m extremely proud of this product, and the team hired to operate the space is one of the best in the region.
What do you think are the biggest challenges and opportunities in your career/industry now?
We have a wonderful opportunity of designing and conceptualize restaurants located in our hotels that connect with the local community. Thinking of sustainable products, concept authenticity aligned with design direction and an independent mentality; staying away from massive buffet setups. Every project only has one chance to make a restaurant great, the design must align with the functional needs of the operation to ensure the effective realization of high-performing venues. The experience of Food & Beverage designers is critical, it is all about details, memorable elements and service delivery that make the concepts relevant, bringing the venue to life.
Last, which Architects and Interior Designers most influence your work?
It has been a pleasure to work and learn from many companies during the past years, such as: ChapiChapo, Streetsense, EDG, Raimundo Morales & Associates, Ellis Adams Group, HBA, Office134, Meyer Davis and Arquitectura de Interiores.
While extravagant, vast houses may have previously set the bar for aspirational luxury, the tiny house movement has proven that size doesn’t necessarily matter. With no sacrifice to aesthetics, functionality, and wellness, residing in smaller spaces means maximizing resources all the while limiting the impact of the built environment.
Thanks to strategic designs and inspirational settings, living big in a tiny home is no longer an impossible dream. Take inspiration from these six award-winning tiny home designs in the LIV Hospitality Awards of 2021.
Prize: Winner in Architectural Design Tiny House
Company/Firm: 23o5 Studio
Lead Designer: Ngo Viet Khanh Duy
Lead Designer(Other): Hue Tran
Photo Credit: Hiroyuki Oki
Location: Thu Duc, Ho Chi Minh City
A seamless architectural translation of the vernacular Vietnam home that captures the perfect relationship between man and nature.
Situated in Thu Duc, Ho Chi Minh City just away from the hustles and bustles of city life, the Hut is designed to provide young couples a much-needed quiet and peaceful atmosphere. Combining the seamless narrative of the traditional Vietnamese dwelling and modern architecture, the design allows light, space, and living things to integrate harmoniously into the built environment.
Like traditional Vietnamese homes, natural light and ventilation are an integral theme. The ceiling opening reaches the outdoors bringing in an ethereal atmosphere. Integrating the angled structure of walls allows one’s visual enjoyment of the changes of the lights and shadow as the sun moves along the home.
Freedom – Blurring away the division between the outdoor nature and interior space. The captivating experience starts as one travels toward the entryway greeted with a garden frontage. In view are iron shelves defining the living area and porch areas but without shutting off the natural ventilation, light, and vistas. The result is a continuous and connected space.
Utilizing natural light and vegetation the kitchen is defined with an arm’s length of fresh vegetables for cooking. The garden provides the perfect space to capture natural ventilation and vent through the entire home.
Flowing through, the bedroom is situated at the tip of the edge of the house. Inspired by its vernacular roots, the double door casement window with louvered panels opens up to a pocket garden. Framed in time the gorgeous view continues to connect the indoor and outdoor spaces.
Inspired by the image of flickering campfire wood, the Tiny Club House located in Da Lat; Vietnam, addresses the real needs of the space while keeping in context with the location. The design concept thus transpires into a symbol that designing with respect to the context can bring profound human values in the age of modern architecture and construction.
The majority of the site’s other buildings are low-rise colonial structures and flower nurseries. The problem is that there hasn’t yet been a distinctive, iconic structure in the neighborhood. This borne the design solution of having the Tiny Club House higher than the rest of the surrounding buildings. With the height and beautifully lit structure, it isn’t hard to miss even during the nighttime. The two-level space also satisfies the need for a sleeping quarter for the manager at the upper level. Like many tiny home designs, the advantage of limited spaces is it brings better communication between people and the spirit of togetherness. The ground level serves as a space for community activities, camping, talking and sharing, and connection between people and nature.
Prize: Winner in Interior Design Tiny House
Company/Firm: L&M Design Lab
Lead Designer: Liu jinrui
Photo Credit: Hu Yijie
Location: Shanghai, China
As interesting as its project title, this tiny home utilizes the diagonal space where three rooms are connected diagonally, which gives the sequence of rooms more space whether used separately or when combined. The diagonal configuration at the same time frees up more space and transforms the limited space into a flexible and efficient residence for five people from three generations.
Taking design strategies from Jade and Exquisite Study a visiting spot in the Surging Waves Pavilion in Suzhou, the tiny home of 34 square meters utilizes visual perception. For instance, the living room, entrance hall, and kitchen sight distance are extended from 3.5 meters to 7.4 meters.
By combining the narrow areas, the horizontal distance is extended maximizing the available space, the design was able to fit a living room, two kitchens, a game area, two bedrooms, and a singing hall. Other than combining areas with the diagonal configuration, depth perception is extended by having the exposed beams covered with wood skin harmoniously with wardrobes in the grand room.
In Shanghai, there is a severe housing shortage. A family of five can barely fit in this ancient flat, which is smaller than 34 square meters in size. This family deserves to have a complete life free from bitterness in child rearing, just like the thousands of other suffering regular families in Shanghai. This example of a home makeover among hundreds of homes creates a lyrical Garden of Eden in the busy world. Truly an architectural design that makes it possible to live big in a tiny house.
Prize: Winner in Architectural Design Tiny House
Company/Firm: YASUYUKI KITAMURA
Lead Designer: Yasuyuki Kitamura
Location: Osaka, Japan
A modern take on your ranch-style house, the one-story home for a young couple is set among the gorgeous mountains in Minoh city, Osaka Japan. While there is fast development in the area, you could still spot deer walking on the streets. The architecture aims to highlight man’s harmonious coexistence with the rich natural surroundings while showcasing local character that is lacking in most of the surrounding houses.
Situated on the northern hill of the city, the structure with deep eaves and concrete walls in a maze-like design provides privacy and protection from the elements. While it strategically provides the needed obscurity from specific sections of the building the translucent and open skylight vaguely provides a boundary between the exterior and interior spaces.
With deep eaves, the gabled roof is structured with a low profile to keep harmoniously with the surrounding landscape.
The project was built with a relatively small construction budget utilizing typical timber building techniques. The wooden pillars are 105 mm square and made of common structural metals. To guarantee strong seismic performance and drastically shorten the building duration, a straightforward symmetrical frame structure with columns placed one pitch apart, a single longitudinal climbing beam inside and outside, and rafters with narrowing ends are employed.
Prize: Winner in Architectural Design Short-term Rental
Company/Firm: Agraff Arkitektur AS
Lead Designer: Yashar Hanstad
Lead Designer(Other): Andreas Gjertsen, Ørjan Nyheim from FUR Arkitekter
Location: Stokkøya, Åfjord, Norway
From catch through cooking and serving – From an old, rundown boathouse rebuilt to a small yet impressive home on stilts, the Stokkøy Food Studio in Åfjord, Norway offers customers a unique experience among the breathtaking seaside. You can rent the boathouse and enjoy the scenic seafront of Stokkya together with a chef.
While creating a modern boathouse, the design stays with the Norwegian coastal building tradition of building boathouses while integrating modern architectural features.
The sea-oriented front opens up in big windowpanes, filling the inside with a light and providing a breathtaking perspective of the sea, while the other facades are kept basic. One enters at a half level, observing the openly arranged sleeping plateaus hung from the roof below and the living areas below. The kitchen has direct access to the pier outside and is visible from the sitting and dining spaces.
Using the previous boathouse’s features as a model provided the project with a neat, classically styled appearance. The interior’s design was influenced by the preservation concept, which encouraged imagination and free thought.
The modern boathouse was designed for social and culinary functions while adhering to Norwegian coastal building tradition. The original size, shape, and docking scheme of the old boathouse were retained. Its wooden construction was recreated using bound timber, with junctions precision cut by CNC, and assembled using only dowels.
Prize: Winner in Architectural Design Lodge
Company/Firm: Snorre Stinessen Architecture
Lead Designer: Snorre Stinessen
Location: Lyngen, Norway
Like the mesmerizing northern lights, Aurora Lodge located in the remote Lyngen Alps functions as a part private retreat and a tiny lodge. With the such enamoring site, the design aims to respect the natural setting. The tiny home’s reverence for the space starts by having the structure built along the terrain rather than going against the plateau. While the building’s high ceilings and unbroken glass walls open up the sky and outside scenery within.
The outdoor scenery from the bedroom is simply amazing with a rather simple architectural concept of opening the space with large windows and
The simple A-frame construction resembles a basic shelter; however, this one is set back from the coast so that the roof lines up with the landscape there, offering solitude on one side and expansive vistas on the other. The main apartment has two lofted bedrooms with a huge, common bath, three bedrooms with private, en-suite bathrooms, and a totally autonomous communal living area. The main kitchen and eating area are located in the northernmost apartment, which was built to resemble a “winter garden” observatory and offers stunning views of both the nearby terrain at your feet and the far horizon.
A second annex/suite follows the same architectural philosophy as the main home and is accessible from the walkway. The sauna is located in a separate structure across the stream, with its interior completely devoted to views of the ocean, the Northern Lights, or the setting sun.
While a thriving community benefits from the economic growth fostered by local restaurants, these public spaces are influential in the socio-cultural aspect of the place. Restaurants are gathering spaces where relationships are formed and memories are made. Moreover, local recipes and products are preserved and experienced by the community.
A restaurant’s ambiance is significant in its success by affecting the overall experience of its customers. LIV Hospitality Design Awards recognizes exceptionally designed spaces in the midst of the food and beverage industry’s evolution, celebrating quality, promoting creativity, and promoting innovations. The following 10 restaurant projects have been awarded by LIV Hospitality Design Awards for their exciting new concepts and strategic design solutions.
Wan Chu-One Avenue by Lu & Yang Design Company.
Designed by Lu & Yang Design Company, Wan Chu-One Avenue is a restaurant in China that embodies the distinct aesthetic and refined beauty of Huizhou culture, craftsmanship, architecture, and art.
Huizhou, which is located in Anhui Province, China’s southernmost province, serves as a bridge between Mount Huangshan and Baiyue Mountain. For centuries, the ancient Huizhou forefathers worked hard to achieve exceptional cultural success in Huizhou’s domains of handicraft, architecture, art, and other creative endeavors. In this enchanted location, Huizhou culture, characterized by its particular style and great refinement, was born. It has a significant impact on human civilization and is a treasure of Chinese culture. Since its beginnings, “Wan Chu” in Huizhou, China, has preserved cultural history and passed on cultural nuances.
To grasp a sense and context of the place, the designer observed the ancient folk villages, spoke with and exchanged ideas with the heirs of intangible cultural heritage, and thoroughly investigated the ancient villages there to uncover tales of grand mansions that were glorious and flourishing in order to reveal Huizhou’s true appearance.
Modern architectural aspects are used as the basis for the design concepts. An old Chinese town was relocated into the city’s core after two years of work to make the concept a reality.
ëlgr Restaurant by Source Interior Brand Architecture
Photo Credit: Sean Gibson
ëlgr from the Old Norse language for moose is a homage to the owner’s Swedish ancestry. The Scandinavian interior with hints of modern geometry offers a calming air to its patrons as it merges wood and metal materials in calming accents such as sage green, charcoal and black hues. Different dining areas integrated inside the restaurant boost the already strikingly beautiful outside. Diners are enticed further into the darker interior of the restaurant, past exquisitely tables with slate dinnerware until they emerge onto a courtyard with a bar, corner couch, café seats and tables, and a pizza oven that is filled with light and plants. There is a location with leather banquettes and aesthetically pleasing curated displays that is right off the street and has plenty of sunlight. Urban, gregarious, and very beautiful.
Nooa by Bishop Design By Paul Bishop
The Nooa which means completely natural is rooted in the goal of creating a unique restaurant space with South African influences. The working concept starts in Rooibos Land, a place where South Africa offers its natural grandeur.
While mostly utilizing natural materials, the design is enhanced using mixed media flooring options. A range of polished and scraped marbles are among these appealing surfaces, which contrast with the wood finishes to create interior spatial zones. Customers find that exploring the restaurant is enjoyable since there is something to be savored in every location because it exudes natural beauty and straightforward design.
The tiled columns are accentuated by creative elaboration that blends natural shapes with something a little more lovely. A portion of the space has red brick brickwork combined with olive paneled wall cladding, dark wood flooring, and multiple gold accents, producing a unique combination of how the different media may be employed. A creative restaurant menu that offers mouthwatering South African cuisine.
Utilizing light and space, the design employs open shelves to allow light and visual continuity. The open shelves are securely held by floor-to-ceiling metal stilts harnessed on the ceiling and securely anchored down creating ample space for display.
Buddha-Bar New York by Yod Design
Photo Credit Andriy Bezuglov
Asian food is served in the two-story restaurant Bar New York, which is located in Manhattan’s Tribeca district. The project primarily explores reincarnation as it manifests in the creation of new objects, spaces, and a major brand whose history began with the 1996 launch of the first Buddha Bar in Paris.
In the largest hall, a glass Buddha statue measuring 4.5 meters high is located close to the entrance. To create a futuristic atmosphere, we abandoned the notion of a god composed of the yellow metal. It is made up of roughly 1000 flat parametric parts. The projection of 3-dimensional digital art gives the appearance of a hologram.
The enormous metal pendant lights in the main dining area give an oriental feel, but they are also like some silently hovering drones from the future. The modern integration and the building’s original atmosphere are blended together in the interior’s grays, browns, and blues. We used interior features to convey the rebirth theme. such are dried flora and wood that is 800-4000 years old. The era of New York’s industrial development is reflected in the cast-iron columns, original timbers of the structure, and steel-bar screens.
De Uitsmijter by Apto Architects Bv
Photo Credit Wim Hanenberg
Dubbed “The Yellow Restaurant”, De Uitsmijter opened its doors in 2020 next to the RAI in Amsterdam Zuid. Inspired by the simplicity of the classic Dutch dish Uitsmijter (“outs-my-ter”). Uitsmijter is simply an open-faced ham, cheese, and egg sandwich. It is comparable to the French croque madam, but it is not at all mistaken for being delicate because it contains white bread and at least three eggs.
The cuisine concept pays homage to the traditional Dutch dish with the same name by exclusively serving uitsmijters. De Uitsmijter is available to everyone, whether they are young or elderly, together or alone, working professionals or tourists, unlike other one-product ideas. Living in your parents’ house is reflected in the interior decor. consuming a healthy dinner at the kitchen table following a late-night outing or taking the family to breakfast on Sunday. Pure nostalgia in an opulent, contemporary atmosphere.
Order at the bar and pay directly. If you are in a rush, eat your uitsmijter standing at the bar, just like in France or Spain. If you want to stay a bit longer and watch some show cooking, you can take place in the ‘kitchen’. If you need a bit more quietness you can walk into the back part of the café. Work, meet, or relax. Just eat at your own pace, it’s up to you!
Taste of Dadong • Rhapsody, Shanghai by AD Architecture
Photo Credit yuuuunstudio
A rhapsody in color and light, the Taste of Dadong in Shanghai is designed to create a mood that elates the emotions, ideas, and resonance in a social setting.
The Taste of Dadong is an offshoot of the already well-known Da Dong restaurants, the sub-brand aimed to have a more subtle and relaxing vibe in the dining experience. Designed by AD Architecture it explores cool and psychedelic tunes to give the illusion of entering a new dimension.
The modern aesthetics with abstract forms and irregular routes blur away boundaries and spaces. The entrance is quite obscure as it creates a meandering path and the wall-to-ceiling curved partitions and circular dining tables create intimate spaces for smaller groups. The patrons can opt for the booths that are strategically located throughout the dining space.
The invigorating play of light and shadow comes from the LED panels, seeping through the walls and the added mirrored ceiling bounces reflections which add to the dreamy quality of the space. Adding the cosmic quality is the bluish tint juxtaposed with the fuchsia-pink glow installed behind a faux skylight above the eating areas and seating booths. The bar radiates the fuchsia hue behind the open shelving, highlighting the area and creating an interesting blend of the blue and pink hues that reflects on the architectural surfaces.
The best restaurants transport you to another location. Places where you suspend disbelief and embark on a trip to a place you have never been. Creating a succession of rooms that complement the experience of a fantastic restaurant operator is truly the core motivation behind any successful restaurant design. Additionally, these are locations where communal meals and culture are discussed. One of the best cities in the world for international eating in Melbourne. Its restaurants provide a wide range of cuisines. One of the newest places that showcase this fantastic eating tradition is Yakimono.
Yakimono welcomes guests with giant graphic signs and enormous orbs, channeling the future mood of Japanese anime and movies like Blade Runner 2049 and Ghost in the Shell.
Min Food by Bigsense Design Studio
Photo Credit Bigsense Design Studio
Min Food is a space of simplicity and deep respect for organic sensations. In order to merge Japanese and Western flair, the design emphasizes the texture of objects and creates an atmosphere with natural coatings, wood, and foreign furniture. The brand promotes “finding beauty in life via the eating experience” and has a basic aesthetic.
In order to provide a welcome open area for the community, the walls surrounding the perimeter were demolished. A desaturated color palette enables seasonal design changes, and plenty of greenery and vacant spaces highlight the antique house’s true beauty. The movement flows inside the area are organized, and a sizable part of wood and decorations offer a sustainable design and sensory experience.
In order to enhance return visits and stickiness, perspective is used to create layered scenes through diverse materials, artifacts from various time periods and places, and natural light exhibits aesthetic diversity and gives each seat its own ambiance.
Perspective is employed to create layered scenes that encourage repeat visits and stickiness; different materials, relics from many eras and locations, and natural light showcase aesthetic diversity and give each seat a unique mood.
Photo Credit Neil Burger and Jacob Hand
The Venteux is a chic and charming brasserie situated in Chicago’s famous Magnificent Mile Carbide & Carbon skyscraper. Donald Young, the city’s youngest chef to receive a MICHELIN Star, runs Venteux. To create Venteux, Young and national hospitality pioneer, Clique Hospitality, enlisted renowned design firm Studio Munge to completely transform the existing 4,000 sq. ft. restaurant area into two distinct gastronomic experiences that both honor the love of high living of the French.
With a color scheme of sage green, cream, and terracotta, Venteux’s cozy café area exudes romance. Design features include an enormous brass pendant lamp, exquisite moldings, flecked gold antique mirrors, and flowery fabrics. Sunlight pours through the lofty 40-ft. Visitors may relax in one of the soft velvet booths or marble-topped tables, which are surrounded by large windows and rich flora paintings on the walls. A large bar spans the length of the unusual dining area in the gleaming brasserie, which also has chairs covered in rich burgundy velvet, old Persian carpets, and elements like expressive stones, cognac leather, and oak wood.
Miss Miu by Krucker Partner AG
In the restaurant, a young Korean lady named “Miu” who joined a traveling circus in Seoul in the 1980s and swiftly rose to prominence with her burlesque performances, is shown in a fictionalized manner. The Miss Miu visitors are taken into a Mystical Circus World between burlesque and “Naughty Korea.”
The use of a circus tent to bridge the facade-separated interior and outdoor spaces in this project was significant difficulty in maintaining the space’s unity. The front of the building was intended to physically melt and flow within, merging the interior and outside worlds. Other dedicated all-weather spaces were made utilizing snug circus wagons and trailers in addition to the circus tent.
There are several fun areas spread around the restaurant. The authentically recreated BBQ Street offers a variety of sensual experiences, including a carousel lounge with floating balloons, a bus stop in Gangnam that serves as a waiting area for takeout, a self-order station turned gaming salon, a small shop, a knife-throwing wall for photos, the circus tent with a stage where guests can enjoy exciting burlesque performances, or you can simply go on a sensual journey of experience there.
What makes the best luxury hotel design? These nine luxury hotel designs go beyond food and accommodation to create the ideal hotel escape that’s perfect for design lovers. Injecting innovative and sustainable elements as well as focus on individuality, interaction, and regional and cultural elements emerging from your typical hospitality design that is truly transcending. They have all been awarded at LIV Awards, one of the most esteemed hotel awards honoring exceptional interior design and architecture projects that improve the visitor experience. The LIV Hospitality Design Awards is the only award-giving body that recognizes the creativity of diverse types of accommodation in food and beverage establishments.
Mandarin Oriental Presidential Suite by DESIGNWILKES
Impressive views, cascading luminaires, sweeping geometric patterned floors with indulging furniture and art. An amalgamation of these elements creates an undeniable air of opulence in UAE’s Mandarin Presidential suite. Transcend in the moment and space with this luxury hotel’s stunning architectural and interior design.
Inspired by the rich and delicate embroidery of UAE, the glorious spaces are lined with metallic elements. The gold edgings are predominantly seen along the multi-layered tray ceiling and furniture as well as organic patterns on textured rugs and upholstery. Different architectural elements are detailed with local embroidery details, which serve as reminders of the local heritage of the hotel location.
The suite also includes a function that revives memories of Arabic hospitality by using several Arabic Majlis features. Another feature of this opulent apartment is the “Arabic coffee nook,” which has a view of the Mediterranean.
Monsaraz Hotel Point Loma San Diego by Kirk Nix
Situated in Point Loma San Diego, dubbed as “the place where California had begun”, Monsaraz Hotel design effortlessly displays an artful yet simple interior. The marina, which is currently a popular attraction in this little village, is just next to the property. A remarkable concept is hosted by the Monsara Hotel. Thanks to its sleek design, elements from Portugal, unforgettable cuisine and drink, and refreshing simplicity is an experience.
Mobile workstations suitable for personalized work are provided in accommodations to seamlessly balance work and leisure. There are 92 bedrooms that are tastefully decorated with blue accents, as well as gray tones and wood accents, making them elegant but approachable. Blue ceramic tiles are used to line bathrooms as a nod to traditional Portuguese designs.
The Monsaraz’s core is a 4,000-square-foot courtyard in the center of the hotel. The outdoor area, which is built around a live tree, has a living plant wall and an alluring mural as accents, providing a backdrop for a range of programming or leisure activities. Evocative use of materials, a clever play of heritage and warm easy interiors are what makes it so very special.
The gorgeous resort is situated on a 12-meter-high granite hill that slopes down to the sea on Na Jomtien Beach, not far from a fishermen’s hamlet. Close by is the Ang Sila stonemasonry settlement. Mason’s building is symbolically molded into the slope employing material integration of granite stone and concrete, both of which were inspired by the stone hillside location and the workmanship of the Ang Sila stonemason.
35 individual pool villas make up the complex, together with its restaurant, spa, fitness center, pool, and seaside bar. The cave-like homes are cut on one-third of the 48,000 square meter plot, decreasing the slope to maximize the sea view while maintaining peace and seclusion within. There are four different room kinds for the pool villas: garden, duplex, beachside, and beachfront. With a view of the ocean, each variety is situated in lowering contours. Throughout the project, local materials including granite, terrazzo, and teak wood were utilized. The sculptors from Ang-Sila created the inside and in order to depict the whole design and building process, black and white film images taken during the construction phase by Chatchakad Waikawee are utilized as décor.
Patina Maldives by Studio MK27
Photo Credit: Fernando Guerra / George Roske / Jonas Poulsen
No man is an island entire of itself. How can one create a setting that fosters social interaction while offering romanticism and close contact with nature? How do we encourage others to truly share this intense experience of being in one of the world’s most isolated places?
The Maldives hotel offers a warm environment where guests can live simply, let their imaginations run wild, and amp up their natural emotions while dreaming. The volumetric responses are very sensitive, respectful of their surroundings, attempting to create shadows and comfort, and capturing and amplifying the power of the environment. The architectural lines communicate low and eloquently, never crossing the horizon. In order to place life and man at the heart of the experience. All structures have been optically porous, melted, and dematerialized.
Photo Credit: Fernando Guerra / George Roske / Jonas Poulsen
The hotel is an array of moods arranged in an escalating manner, from private to public, from seclusion to belonging, and from simplicity to sophistication. The textures and feelings are increased from 0 to 100, from gentle shadows to intense illumination. It has contrast, pauses, and transparencies in its rhythm.
Four Seasons Hotel One Dalton Street, Boston by CambridgeSeven, Pei Cobb Freed & Partners
Photo Credit: Albert Vecerka; Christian Horan
In a community where redbrick, 19th-century architecture predominates, a new glass skyscraper presents the potential to stand out while politely blending in. The main architectural principle guiding New England’s highest residential skyscraper was that it should be elegant, sculptural, and site suitable. It also had an imposing entryway. The triangular design makes the most of the available space, and the three gently curved corners increase the amount of livable space within the 61 storeys, while giving the building a friendly appearance on the ground. Above level 23, the tower’s residential section is formed by surface cuts that provide each apartment with vistas in two directions. The lowest section of the hotel maintains its curved design as a tight glass enclosure.
Photo Credit: Albert Vecerka; Christian Horan
The granite-clad podium is scaled to the nearby buildings at street level, providing pedestrian-friendly access to public areas. A pool, spa, fitness center, and resident lounge are just a few of the opulent features found within. Residents and visitors will enjoy the tower’s breathtaking views. The arrangement of residential apartments on the upper 40 stories allows for 180-degree unobstructed vistas for the residents on both sides of each corner.
Rosewood Bangkok by Kohn Pedersen Fox Associates
The dynamic shape of the Rosewood Bangkok, which is situated in Bangkok’s prestigious central business area, was influenced by the graceful hand motion of the wai, a traditional Thai greeting, and welcome gesture.
The sloping silhouette complies with Bangkok’s setback regulations while also serving a practical and symbolic purpose. As the structure rises, opportunities for terraces, decreasing floorplates, and distinctive, occupiable places are produced. By using diagonal columns along the inclination of the façade, an inventive structural solution reduces structural transfers and member sizes.
Two connecting high-rise structures reveal a tall, interior central opening. In keeping with the tropical environment, this atrium features lush, vertical terraced gardens, evoking Thailand’s famous caves and creating a unique guest experience.
The 30-storey skyscraper hotel consists of 159-rooms, three restaurants and bars, a posh spa, an outdoor pool, a fitness center, a residential-style meeting and functional space, as well as an event area on the top level that offers sweeping views of the city. Double-exposure “sky villas” with spacious patios and private plunge pools are among the spacious bedrooms.
Four Seasons Resort Seychelles at Desroches Island by Eco-Id Architects Pte Ltd
The tiny 40-key Four Seasons Resort on Desroches Island in Seychelles was built with the goal of providing a retreat into the rustic, carefree atmosphere of a remote island. From the architectural features to the soft furnishings, designers kept in mind how this island resort will look better with time and develop a patina. When choosing materials, our design had to be appropriate for the tropical environment. African aesthetics, such as tribal crafts, black-and-white patterns, and the use of vibrant colors, served as inspiration for designers.
Homestay getaways are appealing. Every house is unique because it displays the personality of the owner.
To evoke the experience of seeing a private home and being amazed by the host’s unusual yet tasteful selections and to maintain the concepts of ecotourism, the designers collaborated with specialists from the Island Conservation Society. Because machine precise methods were lacking, hand-built aesthetics were required. As part of the architectural goal, hand-rendered plastering, solid wood construction rather than veneer carpentry, the beauty of handmade concrete casting, and the faults left by hand-built formwork are all appreciated.
La Clef Champs-Élysées Paris by Studio Jean-Philippe Nuel
In the eighth arrondissement of Paris, the hotel is situated on a quieter street just off the Champs-Élysées. The Hennessey (cognac) family formerly resided in this classic Haussmannian structure. With pops of contemporary art, design furniture, and attractive decorative accents, interiors are light and contemporary. Its unique character and position near the Champs-Élysées make it a charming refuge for chic city-hoppers.
The La Clef Champs-Élysées architectural concept anticipates cutting-edge, opulent facilities in a stunning location, together with personalized service. The perfume bar, the pinnacle of beautiful French savoir-faire, is immediately apparent as soon as you enter the lobby since it exudes the essence of the Champs-Élysées. The design calls for dressing the building’s original details in a contemporary palette of marble, polished brass, and furnishings like the Lunar High back Chair by Stellar Works and pendant lights by Marzais Creations to add a touch of modernity. This will capitalize on the property’s classic Haussmannian-style building to full effect.
The visitor should “live Paris” as a true resident, not as a tourist, according to the design goal. The Residence connects the traditional architectural history to genuine French Art de Vivre by serving as both a backdrop and a location to enjoy life. The concept departs from the conventional hospitality attitude and transforms into a sizable private residence where guests may experience the Parisian Lifestyle of Art, French Gastronomy & Wine, Haute Couture, etc., adding elegance and beauty to the location.
Hotel Chadstone Melbourne, MGallery by Sofitel by dwp
This concept, which was inspired by the fashion industry’s creative process, includes a number of custom experiences that highlight the collaborative impact of the upscale fashion houses that are present in the hotel’s retail environment.
The creative process in the fashion sector served as inspiration for the design of the Hotel Chadstone Melbourne, MGallery by Sofitel, which made clear reference to the characteristic feature of the Chadstone Fashion Precinct, for which it is renowned across the globe. A sequence of fluid, particularly created settings and experiences intended to house a complementary variety of purposes are used to tell the tale of the hotel’s journey of unique, yet fluid, and seamless discoveries.
The $130 million Hotel Chadstone, Melbourne, operated by Accor under the MGallery by Sofitel brand, includes 250 rooms, suites, and penthouses, two premier restaurants, a conservatory bar, and a rooftop pool overlooking Port Phillip Bay and Melbourne’s skyline. DWP was hired to handle the interior design. The landmark hotel is a trademark of style situated in the center of The Fashion Capital Chadstone and is surrounded by a glitzy shopping paradise, offering seamless and distinctive experiences for visitors. The resort incorporates cutting-edge, international luxury brands and was dubbed “an attractive and relaxing place with high-end finishes and carefully selected artworks” by Vogue Australia.
The MGallery brand-appropriate design solution developed by DWP, transports hotel guests into an opulent and fashionable environment; as a homage to the daring and fashionable work of Italian fashion artisans, the design idea is based on the opulent home styling of legendary 20th-century fashion designers. With an integrated concierge service, pre-function space, elegant rooftop event spaces, guest rooms inspired by backstage beauty, and F&B sections that are laced with luxury, DWP have included this in the Lobby.
The Hotel Chadstone includes 250 rooms, suites, and penthouses in addition to two of Melbourne’s top restaurants, a rooftop pool, a conservatory bar, and a wellness spa. It is the only five-star hotel outside of Melbourne’s core business area. The Hotel Chadstone will be the first five-star hotel in Australia to obtain a 5 Star Green Star Design & As Built designation after it has been approved by the Green Building Council of Australia.
