James Beard award-winning chef Michael Smith—a renowned figure in both the local and national culinary arts community—hired Helix Architecture + Design to create his new pasta restaurant. After a year of testing his handmade pastas on diners in his previous restaurant, Chef Smith was ready to introduce Kansas City to his passion for Italian food. Thus, Farina, which is Italian for “flour,” was born. Farina is an immersive hospitality experience that integrates subtle nods to its urban neighborhood and rustic Italy.
Farina is located in Kansas City’s Crossroads Arts District, home to all things creative and authentic. Helix adaptively reused the Dolphin Gallery, a cultural epicenter of artistic expression, which closed in 2013.
The design team was challenged to find harmony within Chef Smith’s desire to recreate the ambiance of rustic Italy in the heart of America, his reputation for culinary excellence and high-end dining experiences, and respect for the gritty nature of the neighborhood.
Chef Smith and the design team wanted the restaurant to be welcoming and approachable. When guests enter, they are immediately surrounded by food, as if they were at a family-style Italian dinner. The warm tones in the leather upholstery, locally made millwork, stacked stone, and custom rugs capture elements of Tuscany and Umbria, and the floorplan allows Chef Smith himself to traipse the restaurant. The design team intentionally limited the use of exposed brick of the existing building, upholding a finished and modern ambiance.
With such an intimate space, the Helix design team paid special attention to every detail. Planks of white oak in varying widths span the ceiling in the same manner as handmade pasta being laid out to dry. The handcrafted cocktail bar, oyster bar, and wine racks also carry on the linearity of pasta. Carefully curated art adorns Farina’s walls, highlighted by custom lighting found in galleries. Even the kitchen was treated with the same level of care and attentiveness, even though it is not accessible to patrons.
Farina hugs the corner of an active intersection, but the atmosphere inside maintains a sense of intimacy. The restaurant features seating for 90 guests in the dining room, along with a cocktail bar, a fresh oyster and charcuterie bar, and a 20-seat private party room. Despite attracting throngs of patrons who made reservations weeks in advance, Farina is acoustically comfortable, and its layout ensures there is not a bad seat in the house. Guests are treated to natural daylight being drawn in through expansive windows that wrap the corner and provide connections to the neighborhood.
