Heston Blumenthal’s The Perfectionists’ Cafe designed by AfroditiKrassa Opens at Heathrow
Heston Blumenthal’s new restaurant,The Perfectionists’ Café, designed by leading London-based restaurant and hospitality design specialist AfroditiKrassa, is now open at Heathrow’s newly-redeveloped Terminal 2.
AfroditiKrassa’s design concept for The Perfectionists’ Café is taken from the menu itself – Modern British signature dishes of the 1960s and 1970s and a celebration of travel in that era. To drive the design language, AfroditiKrassa looked for inspiration in iconic movie and TV references such as Mad Men and Catch Me If You Can. Inspiration was also drawn from influential furniture and interior designer Verner Panton, and the colourful, humorous and ironic work of American graphic designer Saul Bass, who created the branding for various airlines in those decades.
“I have a simple challenge each time, to design the true category definer. It takes come guts to want to challenge the status quo, yet this is where my studio operates, this is where interior design gets really exciting because it becomes much more than colours, finishes and trends. I want to turn spaces into three-dimensional stories infused with meaning, innovation and timeless value,” says Studio Founder, Afroditi Krassa.
Celebrating its famous chef, Blumenthal, the open and theatrical kitchen anchors the space and creates a centre point from which the layout radiates. The kitchen is divided in zones: the ice cream parlour offers Blumenthal’s iconic liquid nitrogen ice cream, a first in an airport. Located in decanters the nitrogen is brought to the working station through bespoke pipes. Progressing into the space, there is a bar with a bakery and deli offer. Food is always in prime position in the space and reflects Heston Blumenthal’s passion for its art. The protagonist of the kitchen is the exposed wood fired oven, again, a first within an airport. Finally, a retail space dedicated to the famous chef is located at the entrance.
“This restaurant design extends beyond the layout, the colour and the finishes; it is the sound of the space, the smell of the kitchen, the weight of furniture and the clever lighting on the dishes that accentuate the creativity behind the cooking. We picked up on the multi-sensorial element of Heston’s cooking and set ourselves a brief that challenged the boundaries of restaurant design. I wanted this restaurant not to feel like a compromise, as so many airport restaurants do, but a destination; a place that has a real sense of arrival and a buzz of optimism running through its DNA, just like the food you are about to be served,” explains Krassa.
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Hopefully, I will travel through Heathrow soon so that I can check The Perfectionists’ Cafe out !
*Images courtesy of Camron PR