The Bistro Siège Social is an interior design project located on the ground floor of 1111 Saint-Charles Street West in Longueuil. Commissioned by Groupe Mercille and carried out by PR Desjardins, this new hybrid space extends and transforms the experience of the office tower's existing lobby, sensitively reinterpreting the architectural and aesthetic codes of corporate environments from the 1960s and 1970s.

Conceived as a natural extension of the postmodern lobby, the project revisits the formal rigor and rationality characteristic of that era, translating them into a contemporary, warm, and welcoming experience. A cross between a café, a bistro, and a social space, the venue is anchored in its tertiary context while offering a new culture of uses within the workplace.

Spanning an area of approximately 2,300 square feet, the layout is organized around two distinct and complementary worlds. The Café Social, located in continuity with the common corridor, acts as a lively and accessible transitional space, bustling with activity throughout the day. The Bistro Siège Social , designed as an informal “head office” for the neighborhood, opens generously onto the terrace and forecourt, encouraging meals, meetings, and gatherings. 

A strong material theme ensures the project's consistency: square white ceramic tiles with a matte finish, used on both vertical surfaces and built-in furniture. Inspired by the patterns in the existing lobby, this material becomes an identifying and structuring motif. A walnut wall punctuated with glass openings filters the light between the café and the bistro, creating a diaphanous separation that maintains a constant visual dialogue between the spaces.

The atmospheres are distinguished by precise work on materials and colors. The café features travertine, mustard tones, and dark wood finishes, while the bistro adopts an enveloping palette of terracotta, deep greens, light wood, and integrated vegetation. Inspired by the modernist interiors of the 1960s and 1970s, the color palette is reinterpreted in a contemporary, understated, and timeless way.

Through a masterful reinterpretation of office codes, the Siège Social bistro and Café Social offer a hybrid, contemporary, and welcoming space, where architecture and interior design play a key role in creating a new sense of sociability at the heart of the workplace.

Photo credits: Alex Lesage