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| Image: Kilian O'Sullivan |
Stiff and Trevillion was approached by Jamie Oliver to design the flagship restaurant in Bath for Jamie’s Italian – the first in a potential rollout. The design was to reflect the origins of traditional Italian cuisine with an emphasis on simple presentation.
The architect was keen to allow the designs to respond to the various sites and by using a palette of natural materials, reclaimed timber and marble along with the brick and stone of the existing building has been able to adapt the design to suit any particular site. A few key design elements such as the lava stone servery and the graphics’ imagery link the design between buildings. The furniture and lighting is a mixture of old classics with items from the farmhouse and old school.
The Guildford site is a stand-alone building in a 1970s shopping centre, teardrop in plan and built in reinforced concrete with a brick facade and large ground-to-first-floor framed windows to the main entrance facade. A large double height space links the two floors. Ceilings and partitions were removed to reveal a magnificent concrete frame and conical steel and timber roof structure, which is left visible in the completed restaurant.
The double-height void at the entrance is retained, with a new steel stair linking the two floors. Part of the first floor has been infilled to create additional seating – the new insertions made in steel and concrete to retain their distinctiveness in the final fitout. The existing concrete frame has been cleaned down and the existing roof fully insulated for thermal and acoustic purposes.
Each floor has its own characteristics and has been treated slightly differently. The ground floor has a polished concrete floor finish, a low ceiling and exposed services with ductwork sprayed in metallic silver. A red glazed lava stone servery identifies the cook line, with marble counter tops to the antipasti area and bar. Hanging meats and herbs are suspended off blackened steel frames from the ceiling. The kitchen is visible from the restaurant, a wood-burning oven forming the main focus.
The first floor incorporates floor tiles purpose-made in a pattern reminiscent of the designs of Gio Ponti and the soaring roof has been lined in natural sawn timber between the existing steel structure.
Furniture is a mixture of Ernest Race BA3 dining chairs, galvanised steel Tolix chairs and purpose-made booths and banquettes. The mood is more retro – in the style of a Lambretta – linked with some natural finishes such as marble and reclaimed timber that were used in the original Jamie’s Italian.
Project team
Architect: Stiff & Trevillion; main contractor: Tekne Shopfitters; client: Jamie’s Italian; photos: Kilian O’Sullivan.
Selected subcontractors and suppliers
Sandblasted concrete, reclaimed timber panelling, blackened steel architrave/skirting/panelling, oak framed shopfront, timber batten ceiling (first floor restaurant): Tekne Shopfitters; polished concrete Floor (ground floor): Creation Floors; wall tiles (customer toilets, front-of-house ground & first floor kitchen): Focus Ceramics; floor tiles (customer toilets): Grestec Tiles; decorative cement floor & wall tiles (first floor): In Situ; leather (banquettes): Cottage Furniture; glazed brick: Ibstock Bricks; ground floor red cook line counter: Pyrolave; blackened steel table bases: Warings Furniture; lighting: Davey Lighting.
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