Marilena Cafe & Raw Bar

For this restaurant project we worked with a well-established restaurant group to expand their network into an island location, while creating a destination dining experience that showcases local seafood and pre-existing culinary highlights of their six other locations. 

Finalist in category: EAT+STAY

Interior Designer: Eric McClelland, ARIDO 
Design Firm: Fleur de Lis Interior Design 
Photographer: Leanna Rathkelly 

The overall design strategy was highly influenced by the architecture of the existing building. Working with a linear perimeter shell in contrast to the curving interior rotunda, the design became a yin-yang of curved and rectilinear forms. 

The space planning needed to utilize every square inch of the irregular space, incorporating dining, patios, bar, and specialty dining. We were tasked with using clients’ existing standard finishes and details throughout the space, but to also reinvent and elevate them, creating a fresh new look. The programming required a variety of seating styles, including rounded dedicated banquettes, flexible linear banquettes, and four-top tables. 

An open concept kitchen was incorporated into the interior to support the ambitious cooking program of a gourmet menu. The curving lines of the banquettes and sushi bar pays homage to the circular atrium, while the linear blocking of the bar and kitchen mimic the perimeter walls. The interaction of these different styles causes design tension and dynamic contrast.

Marilena Restaurant and Raw Bar is a modern, warm, and luxurious high-end dining experience for a varied clientele of young professionals, tourists, and an aging community of retirees. 

Text by: Eric McClelland, ARIDO