Discipline : Interior Design
Categories :
Accommodation, Restaurant & Bar / Restaurant > 1,600 sq.ft. (> 500 sq. m.)
: Gold certification
Categories :
Special Awards / Interior Design + Lighting
: Gold certification
The first branch in a series, the establishment located on Wellington South Street in Sherbrooke represented a considerable architectural challenge. The initial space, barely 1000 square feet, shared a common facade with an adjacent business and sorely lacked character. However, this raw space has been transformed into a vibrant place thanks to the expertise of the project's instigators: a renowned local restaurateur and a Mexican chef, both leading a diversified portfolio of businesses in the region.
The menu, traditional without being stringent, is centered around simple yet impeccably executed dishes, accompanied by a cocktail menu exclusively based on mezcal. The atmosphere is resolutely contemporary, with a tongue-in-cheek nod to 90s hip-hop culture. This aesthetic is reinforced by walls adorned with canvases and quotes from this urban scene.
To highlight this identity coming from Mexican street food, and in collaboration with the design studio Caserne, in charge of branding Santa Maria, we opted for the widespread use of raw materials but crafted nobly. British Columbia Douglas fir plywood, epoxy finishes, and industrially-painted red steel compose the simple palette. This uninhibited approach blends with subtle architectural elements, sometimes evoking pre and post-colonial details of South America.
The lighting, primarily diffused, can be transformed using red filters to shift the restaurant's atmosphere into bar mode, bringing a nocturnal and immersive dimension to the space. The interplay of mirrors and ceiling beams breaks the monotony of limited volumes, offering unexpected visual depth.
Santa Maria succeeds in marrying cultural authenticity with modernity, in a relaxed atmosphere, perfectly aligned with the brand's identity.
