Outline, a London based design practice, created the interior for the Bangalore Express Indian Restaurant located opposite Waterloo Station in South London.
From Outline:
The client wanted a modern and fresh environment to serve their unique version of fast, Indian food. After discussions it became clear that what was required was a re-invention of a very British institution, the Indian curry house.
Previously a Thai restaurant, Outline’s response was to strip the space back to its basic shell of three separate areas. Great care was taken to frame the views through and between these spaces, so that they made a cohesive whole, while maintaining a sense of intimacy. The restaurant’s wall cladding has a linear pattern cut into it. This was done on site using a circular saw to cut shallow grooves. The cladding was then painted one solid colour, after which some of the shapes, created by the grooves, were painted in a strict palette of three contrasting colours. This allowed a composition of shapes and colours, which moves the customer’s eyes around and through the spaces in a controlled way. The inspiration for this wall cladding came from looking at the waste board building contractors put under sheet materials when cutting through them. This process leaves the under board with a series of random, shallow grooves.
Most of the furniture is constructed from fastclamp, galvanised steel tube and fixings, normally used in scaffolding. This gives the restaurant a purposeful, harder edge than the rest of the materials and introduces an urban aspect to the interior.
A series of double height booths runs the entire length of one side of the restaurant. Diners access the higher booths by a scaffold tube step ladder. A mock up of this arrangement was constructed on site to work out how the waiters would serve to the higher levels and review the experience for the customer. The high booths have proved to be a popular feature for the restaurant, while also providing a valuable 24 extra covers.
Visit Outline’s website – here. Visit the Bangalore Express website – here.
Photography – Philip Vile