Space tourism informs design of Ichi Station sushi restaurant in Milan
CategoriesInterior Design

Space tourism informs design of Ichi Station sushi restaurant in Milan

Valencian design studio Masquespacio has completed a dine-in restaurant for takeaway sushi chain Ichi Station in Milan, with interiors designed to resemble a futuristic spaceship.

Set in a historic building in the Brera district, the chain’s latest outpost builds on the same travel and transport concept established across its other outlets – including eight in Milan and another in Turin.

View inside ICHI Station restaurant
Masquespacio has designed Ichi Station’s Brera outpost

But Masquespacio wanted to take this idea to the next level for the new restaurant by drawing on the visual language of sci-fi and space tourism.

“We proposed approaching the travel concept as a trip to the future,” said Masquespacio co-founder Christophe Penasse.

“When you enter Ichi, it’s like entering a capsule-like spaceship travelling through light, where you will disconnect from reality in order to get in touch with the food.”

Takeaway counter of sushi restaurant in Milan by Masquespacio
Customers can pick up orders at the takeaway counter

Masquespacio completely redeveloped the layout of the 80-square-metre site – previously another restaurant – creating a central dining area along with a tunnel where diners can observe some of the sushi-making process.

A pick-up bar close to the entrance was added to separate the circulation routes of take-away customers and diners.

Dining area of ICHI Station restaurant in Brera
The dining area is housed in a cylindrical tunnel

The tunnel motif was developed as a way to express the idea of travel and make a reference to Japan without falling into cliches.

“Some elements were incorporated to remind the customer of Japan, like the huge lighting circles, although we tried to avoid making typical references to Japan such as using wooden structures,” Penasse explained.

The tunnel motif also informed the circular and cylindrical details that pop up throughout the space across seat backs, bar stools and decorative elements such as the circular feature light in the main dining area.

“The shapes and forms give the project the futuristic look that it needed,” the designer said.

Counter seating in Milan restaurant by Masquespacio
Diners can also watch sushi being prepared at the counter

Masquespacio opted for a simple and restrained material palette that includes glass and micro-cement, which was used along with fully integrated tables and seating to create a seamless look reminiscent of a spaceship.

The restaurant’s custom-made furniture brings in another reference to transport design tropes. “You can recognise it as a reinterpretation of the seating in a station and especially on a train,” Penasse explained.

Dining booths in ICHI Station restaurant
LED light panels are integrated into the walls, ceilings and table tops

The interior is finished in neutral shades of beige and off-white but is cast in different vivid colours thanks to the LED lighting system that is integrated into the walls, ceilings and even the table tops.

The lights alternate between shades of blue, green, purple and peach at variable speeds and, according to Penasse, create a veritable “explosion of colour”.

Toilets of restaurant in Milan by Masquespacio
The toilets are finished in contrasting navy blue

Although based in Spain, Masquespacio has completed a number of projects in Italy in recent years.

Among them are two colour-block restaurants for fast-food chain Bun – a blue-and-green interior in Turin and a green-and-purple version in Milan.

The photography is by Luis Beltran.

Reference

Child Studio transforms 60s London post office into Maido sushi restaurant
CategoriesInterior Design

Child Studio transforms 60s London post office into Maido sushi restaurant

Child Studio has used a glass block wall, dark cherry wood panelling and a soft blue coffered ceiling to channel 1960s London in this sushi restaurant.


Located in a former post office, Maido is an eatery in London’s Saint John’s Wood neighbourhood with interiors designed to honour the heritage of the late modernist building.

Glass blcok wall and wooden cupboard in Maido restaurant
A curved glass brick wall divides the space

“We were fascinated by the unique story of this building and aimed to capture the nostalgic atmosphere of 1960s London, paying tribute to the modernist public spaces of the era,” said Child Studio founders Alexy Kos and Che Huang.

“The design evolved around the bold geometry of this period and the juxtaposition of simple materials: wood, glass, clay and steel.”

Steel panelled bar and MR10 tubular steel chairs by Mies van der Rohe chairs in restaurant interior by Child Studio
Maido is anchored by a steel-panelled bar

The walls across the entire space are clad in cherry wood while shallow alcoves are decorated with a rotating selection of artworks.

A suspended coffered ceiling hangs overhead, its grid pattern echoed in the black quarry tiles on the floor and the semicircular glass brick wall that divides the space.

The curved partition wall also forms a generous, leather-upholstered seating booth at the back of the space.

Wood-panelled walls with art in Maido restaurant
Shallow alcoves are decorated with a rotating selection of art

The focal point of Maido’s interior is a central island bar clad in reflective curved steel panels.

Here, the sushi master prepares and serves authentic Japanese dishes while customers perch on polished aluminium bar stools by Japanese industrial designer Naoto Fukasawa.

“It was important for us to create a range of different seating scenarios and balance the convivial atmosphere with more intimate nooks and crannies,” Che explained.

To complete the space, the studio sourced a selection of classic midcentury furniture pieces. These include antique MR10 tubular steel chairs by Mies van der Rohe and moulded plywood armchairs by Norman Cherner.

Pipistrello table lamps, designed by Gae Aulenti in 1965, sit on the island bar and on a large communal dining table while antique wall sconces produced by Italian manufacturer Stilnovo create a cosy ambience.

Wood-paneleld walls with MR10 tubular steel chairs by Mies van der Rohe in restaurant by Child Studio
Mies van der Rohe’s MR10 chair was used throughout the interior

Founded in 2017 by Che Huang and Alexy Kos, Child Studio has previously completed a 1950s-style interior for a vegan pizzeria in west London, which was shortlisted in the 2019 Dezeen Awards.

All photographs are by Felix Speller and Child Studio.

Reference