Located in the heart of Adelaide, Part Time Lover by Sans Arc Studio houses an all-day-diner amongst some of the city’s most significant buildings.
Perched slightly above ground level, the building itself opens up to its surroundings to create some privacy for its occupants while operable boundary windows connect the building to its context. The interior features a strong contrast of new textures against old, along with Carlo Scarpa inspired volumes and forms.
Working with the historical context, the interior maintains the existing Mintaro slate flooring and uses the stone boundary wall as banquette seating. Modern material introductions such as hand-selected blonde WRC timber, brown terrazzo, white concrete and muted green tiles subtly contrast and complement these materials.
The project embraces custom design and manufacturing throughout; five and eight meter long custom linear pendant lights illuminate the bar and banquette seating. Fixed and loose furniture has been adjusted to cope with a fall of 200mm across the space – meaning each seat has its place within the room.
The division of space and management of traffic flow for the diner was carefully considered. There are three pathways across the room, one for staff, one easy route on the southern end of the site, and one through the middle. This walkway through the middle is key, the U-shaped counter is a focal point. It is also a pinch point within the space, discouraging you from cutting through, but catching people, encouraging them to push and interact with those clustered around that spot.
The curves, whilst playing to an aesthetic, create flow and movement through the space, making operation and visiting a smooth experience.
