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Design office Roar Studio combined industrial materials such as concrete and stainless steel with decorative terrazzo and broken ceramic tiles for Drop Coffee, a cafe in Dubai’s Dar Al Wasl Mall.The Dubai-based studio was asked to design an interior that would suit the flow of visitors to the cafe, who enter the space from two different entrances – one connected to the outdoors and one to the mall.
The bar area is framed by a wooden structure
It chose to keep the design simple by focusing on the materials used and framed the bar area of the cafe in pale wood and LED lights to create an eye-catching centrepiece.
“This is the second outlet for this homegrown Emirati brand,” Roar Studio founder Pallavi Dean told Dezeen.
“Their main drive was to achieve a minimal space where the coffee bar is a central feature and creates a theatrical moment – the making of the coffee is at the front and centre stage.”
A broken-tile mosaic decorates the main wall
The ceiling of the cafe is concrete and the studio also painted the walls with a concrete paint finish, which is complemented by a terrazzo-effect tiled stone floor in grey and white hues.
Its colours and shapes are picked up on the main wall, which was decorated with a mosaic of broken ceramic tiles that form an abstract pattern similar to the floor.
“We sourced basic white tiles from Rakceramics – a local manufacturer – which were then broken on-site to compose a patterned wall,” Dean explained.
“We aren’t trying to reinvent the wheel by using broken tiles – our idea was to form a counterpoint to the terrazzo effect porcelain flooring as though the chips of the broken tiles were used in the flooring.”
Stainless steel was used for the countertops
A large counter in pale wood is connected to the ceiling by beams in the same material, framing the bar area of the store. The counter is covered in stainless steel, which was chosen for both practical and aesthetic reasons.
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“The coffee bar has a stainless steel countertop which is extremely sturdy and hygienic but also allows the light to bounce through the space because of its reflectivity,” Dean said.
Orange clamp-style tables for a quick coffee break
Around the base of the bar, lighted skirting made out of glass blocks give the impression that it is floating above the ground. By the side of the bar, the enclosed kitchen area features a wall made from matching glass blocks, enabling visitors to see the silhouettes of Drop Coffee’s staff while they work.
The studio also chose to work with certain materials to help create a less noisy atmosphere for the visitors.
“The ceiling is acoustic foam sprayed, an effect that adds to the industrial aesthetic and helps muffle the noise in the open-plan space – not to mention the noise generated by the coffee machines,” Dean explained.
Grey hues and pale wood decorate the space
Drop Coffee already has one cafe in Dubai and the plan is for each of the branches to be associated with a different colour, with burnt orange used for Roar Studios’ design.
The colour has been dotted throughout the space and was used for seating as well as on clamp-style tables set along one wall for customers who want to have a quick coffee standing up.
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Roar Studio was founded in 2013 as Pallavi Dean Interiors by Dean, who was a Dezeen Awards 2020 judge, and rebranded as Roar Studio in 2018. It has previously designed a high-tech learning space for children in Dubai and issued a white paper about the ways in which Covid-19 will impact the design of schools and colleges.
Photography is by Oculis Project.
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Turquoise and sea-green tiles wash over the undulating facade of this family home in Sydney, designed by local practice Luigi Rosselli Architects.The Bondi Bombora house is occupied by three generations of a family and their gang of dogs, cats and chickens.
The swelling ocean waters of nearby Bondi beach informed the design of the three-storey home, which Luigi Rosselli Architects has named after bombora – an indigenous Australian term used to describe a wave which forms over submerged fragments of reef or rock offshore.
“It’s an homage to that surfers’ haven; to the swell and the waves that have formed a rich intertidal culture for millennia,” said the practice.
Elements of the home have been made to emulate the shape of a wave, like its undulating front elevation.
Slim turquoise and sea green-coloured tiles arranged in a herringbone pattern cover the bottom third of the elevation, which the practice hopes will “shimmer in the daylight like the surface of the ocean”.
Ripple-edged frames made from black steel also surround the windows and doorways.
Black steel has additionally been used to clad the top third of the house, which the practice likens to an “armoured battleship”.
Inside Bondi Bombora are a series of airy, light-filled living spaces with high ceilings, which Luigi Rosselli Architects created with the help of interiors studio Alwill.
The practice had been inspired by the lofty proportions of piano nobiles, or “noble floors” – the first storey of grand Italian palazzos where main reception rooms and bedrooms would be placed.
One side of the home accommodates an open-plan kitchen with bright white cabinetry. Inhabitants can eat at the marble-topped breakfast island, or around the more formal wooden dining table.
Where possible, Alwill has incorporated practical features for family living. For example, a sideboard that runs along the rear of the room includes a fold-out desk where the kids can do their homework.
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Expansive glazed panels can be slid back to access the garden, where landscaper Michael Bates has planted an abundance of fruit trees and pollen-friendly plants for the bees the inhabitants keep.
A double-height void accommodates a small study area and a stairwell that leads up to the Bondi Bombora’s sleeping quarters.
Cocoon-like pendant lamps made from black and white mesh cascade down the centre.
The entire back wall of the stairwell has been in-built with a towering bookshelf. More books can be stored in the stepped shelving unit that’s been built to sit alongside the steps.
A deep-set window on the first-floor landing has also been transformed into a cosy reading nook.
Luigi Rosselli Architects has been established since 1984 and works out of offices in Sydney’s Surry Hills suburb.
The practice has designed a number of dwellings around the Australian city. Among them is Peppertree Villa, a 1920s home that features a dramatic spiral staircase and contemporary glass conservatory.
Photography is by Prue Ruscoe.
Project credits:
Architects: Luigi RosselliProject architects: Sean Johnson, Diana YangInterior designers: Alwill InteriorsBuilder: Building With OptionsJoiner: BWO Fitout and InteriorsStructural consultant: Geoff Ninnes Fong and PartnersLandscaper: Bates LandscapeWindows: Evolution Window SystemsMetal roofing/cladding: Traditional Metal Roofing
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