These days, discerning diners expect to enjoy fine cuisine in appealing surroundings, with successful restaurateurs recognising the significance of creating classic ambience. Here are 5 restaurants who combine their first-class culinary reputations with high-quality design to enrich the dining experience.
La Garrigue, Edinburgh
Enjoying a long-standing culinary reputation, the chef-owner hails from the Languedoc region and this has influenced the decor’s distinctive rustic character. The interior enjoys deep blues tinged with lavender, redolent of Provencal summers and offering diners a warm welcome on chilly evenings. Finely grained wooden floors lend an elegant simplicity, while chunky wooden furniture reminds one of cosy French country kitchens.
Aubaine, Manchester
Designed on 2 levels, the floor to ceiling windows offer diners a combination of memorable city views and optimal natural light. Sensitively placed lighting complements the abundance of glass, especially effective on dark wintry days. The blue and white tiled flooring and profusion of mirrors offer a flourish of modernity with a hint of Mediterranean chic.
Cafe de l’Homme, Paris
Formerly working in the nobility’s kitchens before being displaced by the French Revolution, Parisian chefs gave the world the modern restaurant concept. This restaurant is a powerful example of this, with the finest cuisine served against a backdrop of chic, modern lines. Carpeting benefits from symmetric patterns and seating arrangements follow clean lines to support the organisation of a hectic service. The modernity avoids the risk of a stark atmosphere, with the use of neutral colour blocks interspersed with glossy black. Added warmth is provided by a large central window.
Bistrotheque, London
Industrial chic isn’t just another word for functionalism and this is evidenced by the sympathetic conversion from factory to a vibrant restaurant. The open kitchen design is a nod to the factory conveyor system, a cleverly designed backdrop to the busy vibe. Metallic design of the kitchen area sits easily with warm lighting and spacious seating arrangements, the result a vibrant dining experience.
Le Grand Restaurant, Paris
Unlike the gilded traditionalism of some high-end Paris restaurants, Le Grand has opted for a contemporary, bold style which declares pride in its alternative design. Diners are treated to striking aesthetics with the white marble designed open kitchen, cleverly offset by the relaxed dining area. The plush honeycomb-patterned carpeting is exquisite, holding its own against the spectacle of the skylight, a dramatic concoction of metal and glass that is redolent of the Cubo-Expressionist movement.
