The ambitions head chef and owner of the Underground Cookery School wanted to create a space that could effortlessly transform from utilitarian kitchen and conference space, to an intimate dining room. He wanted a practical solution, but a dramatic and enjoyable outcome, for his client groups of corporate groups who get together to cook, socialise and dine together.
Knowing that we needed to approach the transformation with a light touch, we decided to focus on the theatre of the existing bright, clean and utilitarian restaurant kitchen, in contrast to a dark and intimate dining room. The chefs did not find the features of the professional kitchen particularly exciting, but we knew that by focusing on the utilitarian beauty of a working kitchen; the copper heating lamps, gleaming tiles, steel surfaces and the systematic assembly of cooking utensils and coloured chopping boards, the guests would get the real “back of house” experience the cookery school wanted to offer. With an elaborate lighting scheme, deep blue timber panels, and bespoke lamps by James Plant Studio, we could quickly change the focus from the kitchen to a calm, social and intimate dining space.
Seeing the qualities in what's already there, and emphasising on what works well rather than starting from scratch is often the most economic option, and it is certainly the most sustainable. The client managed to create the transformation he was after on a limited budget. Nothing makes us happier than a client that clearly thinks they got more than what they had hoped for.
