Ito Japanese Restaurant by Monique Lee is a highly esteemed winner of the very prestigious 2023 Bronze A' Design Award in Interior Space and Exhibition Design Competition Category.
BronzeInterior· 2023
Ito Japanese Restaurant
by Monique Lee
Client: Parkview Green
Bronze A' Design Award Winner in Interior Category
Verified Award Winner
Verify Award Status for #144170The Design
About Ito Japanese Restaurant
Ito's shopfront starts with a Karesansui landscape showing bold water current images and bamboo trees. At the entrance is a reception area designed with metallic and natural materials. Walking through the interior, it is a Shiheyan layout. There is an atrium space in the center with private rooms in an earthy tone on its south, east, north, and west corners. Two open kitchens reserved for Robatayak and Teppanyaki cuisines are in the rear part. They are like the open space under the eaves of traditional Japanese houses where families and friends gather and chat during leisure time.
The Recognition
About the Bronze A' Design Award
Ito Japanese Restaurant is a Bronze A' Design Award winner, a highly prestigious recognition granted to outstanding designs distinguished by creativity, ingenuity, and astuteness. Bronze winners are amply skillful and strikingly creative artifacts that authenticate the vast experience, imagination, and resourcefulness of their designers. Ito Japanese Restaurant is expected to be a highly regarded, admired, and cherished object that is notably professional and innovative. This Bronze A' Design Award-winning design incorporates best practices in art, science, design, and technology, and is excellent for its attention to detail. Ito Japanese Restaurant splendidly satisfies needs, touches desires, charms feelings, and appeals to curiosity.
Interviews
Grand Interview
Your innovative fusion of Karesansui landscape with Chinese Siheyuan layout at Ito Japanese Restaurant creates a unique spatial narrative - could you elaborate on how this cultural blend enhances the dining experience?
The integration of Karesansui landscape with the Siheyuan layout creates a serene and harmonoius environment that encourages relaxation and contemplation. This unique spatial narrative allows diners to experience a blend of Japanese and Chinese cultural elements, fostering a deeper approeciation for the culinary offerings. The thoughtful arrangement of space promotes a sense of intimacy while celebrating nature, enhancing the overall dining experience.
The metallic bamboo screens and artful ceiling designs at Ito Japanese Restaurant represent a departure from traditional Japanese design elements - what inspired this contemporary interpretation of classical Japanese aesthetics?
The contemporary interpretation was inspired by a desire to innovate while respecting tradition. The metallic bamboo screens symbolize resilience and modernity, reflecting the dynamic nature of contemporary design. The artful ceiling designs add a layer of artistic expression, creating a striking visual contrast that elevates the dining atmosphere. This approach aims to bridge the gap between classical aesthetics and modern sensibilities, offering a fresh perspective on Japanese design.
How did the space constraints of 375 square meters influence your decision to utilize corridors and glass screens instead of solid walls at Ito Japanese Restaurant, and what impact has this had on the overall flow and atmosphere?
The 375 square meter space led us to use corridors and glass screens instead of solid walls, enhancing visibility and flow. This design choice fosters an open atmosphere, allwoing natural light to permeate and creating a sense of spaciousness.
Behind the Design
Press Kit
Credits, team members and technical details provided by the designer.
- Unique Properties
- Design combines Chinese and Japanese garden philosophies. It blends Chinese patterns and Japanese Karesansui landscape. To present traditional concepts in a modern way, decorations combine natural and metallic materials. Interior consists of three sections – The Atrium, Mystery of Nature and the Periphery. The atrium is a courtyard surrounded by several compartments for sensing four seasons. The rear part is a Japanese periphery space for signature Robatayaki and Teppanyaki cuisines.
- Dimensions & Packaging
- Floor area: 375 square meters.
- Tags
- Chinese and Japanese garden, Karesansui, Shiheyan, Robatayak, Teppanyaki. Asia Restaurant.
- Production Technology
- Design emphasizes a balanced form that combines Karesansui landscape techniques with Chinese Siheyuan layout. It also incorporates the idea of artful ceiling designs in ancient architecture, yet reinvent it in modern 3D style. Instead of Japanese washi paper, metals and glasses are used to make screens. Steel, embossed glass, marble stones become key construction materials. Meanwhile, Engineer Wood Flooring technique reduces the use of original hardwood.
- Design Challenge
- Several independent dining sections are needed within limited interior space. To keep a spacious feeling, corridors and glass screens, instead of solid walls, perform the partitioning function. The pressing feeling resulting from a low roof is overcome by a feature ceiling built with reflective rippled mirror-polished steel which is also a focal point. Metal bars of the feature wall at the shopfront had to be linked and set at specific angles manually which was a process requiring much skill and labor.
- Research
- Information is mainly provided by clients. Meanwhile, we also make use of our experience got from previous design projects executed in Mainland China.
- Inspiration
- Considering the brand’s feature of serving original Japanese cuisine in Beijing’s Parkview Green renowned as a hub of innovative thinking, design focuses on going beyond traditional Japanese design norms. It presents a distinct Japanese Karesansui - dry landscape. Various shapes are deployed to present a dynamic nature. Chinese garden elements are assimilated to create a different aesthetic appeal. Artful ceilings and metal bamboo screens, instead of washi paper, are products of this concept.
- Project Duration
- The project started in Dec. 2020 in Beijing, China, and finished in Nov 2021. The Restaurant’s location is at Parkview Green FangCaoDi, Chaoyang Dist., Beijing, China.
- Operation Flow
- To facilitate restaurant’s operation to serve various gathering purposes, interior space is divided into sections with different vibes. Instead of solid partitions, corridors are paved to run through the whole venue to form dining sections. Translucent glass screens are installed to keep privacy of each section while maintaining visual comfort. For quick access, private rooms are located next to the entrance, so visitors could enter the rooms directly without crossing other dining sections.
- Patents
- Copyright belongs to Monique Lee, 2020.
- Team Members
- Designer: Monique Lee
- Image Credits
- All images: Parkview Green, ITO Restaurant, 2021
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