The latest addition to the successful restaurant chain Sticks’n’Sushi is found on the busy King’s Road near Sloane Square in London. The restaurant occupies all floors in a classic, white three-story townhouse while a protruding, black-and-grey tile-clad foundation finishes off the architectural elegance. With a fascinating body of work that merges architecture with design, interior design and art direction, the designers behind this restaurant are the award-winning Danish practice Norm Architects.

For the King’s Road job, they chose to highlight the architecture of the house by following the nature of the spaces and their intake of daylight: 

“We wanted to take the guests on a journey by creating a diversity in the design. You move from the dark cellar to the light first floor. 

The contrasts in the chosen materials underline this experience,” explains Katrine Goldstein, managing director at Norm Architects.

Throughout all three floors, the interior design is chaste and features three different dining chairs and a lounge chair—all by Hans J. Wegner—in different materials. 

Sticks’n’Sushi is owned and driven by Danes and famed for the original interpretations of Japanese gastronomy; another important feature of the restaurant that the interior had to reflect according to Katrine Goldstein:

“There’s a strong kinship between Japanese and Danish design traditions as seen in both design language, materials, the attention to details and the craftsmanship. It was an exciting task to find and express that particular aspect in the décor of Sticks’n’Sushi.”  

 

Upon entering the restaurant from King’s Road, the ground floor presents a muted and minimalist interior with an industrial feel as dark wood cover the walls, floors are glazed in gray and textiles are held in the same nuances. An organic leather sofa meets the CH25 lounge chair by Hans J. Wegner to form the sculptural elements of the space.

When you descend the elegant, black and industrial staircase, you experience a dark and intimate space with dark-gray walls, a grid ceiling in oak and black-painted tables. Here, you sit in black versions of the CH20 and CH36 dining chairs, designed by Hans J. Wegner. 

If you, on the other hand, ascend from the ground floor to the first floor, the color scheme changes to a lighter, warmer one.

Here, the floors consist of oiled oak-planks by Dinesen and the gray walls are painted in Jotun Minerals that adds structure. During the day, the tall windows allow the room to be flooded in daylight, whereas long, lantern-like paper lamps create an intimate atmosphere at night. 

The high-back oak-sofas are upholstered with Kvadrat Coda textile and with their height, they double as natural dividers in the room. Guests dine at rectangular or circular tables in oak as the CH23 and CH37 dining chairs, in oak and with seats in natural cord, provide the seating. With their timeless and elegant qualities, they accompany the light interior in the most ideal way and together, all the elements of the restaurant—the furniture, the surfaces, the lighting—create a balanced atmosphere for the tasty and visually stunning food.