An Earthy Palette Defines This Best of Year Award-Winning Restaurant by Sò Studio in Shanghai

2021 Best of Year winner Hospitality – Casual Dining

The client gave mostly free rein for its new restaurant. Except for one: Avoid dark colors. Drawing on that minimal brief and chef Johnston Teo’s contemporary dishes, Sò Studio design directors Yifan Wu and Mengjie Liu responded with an earthy environment rendered in a soft palette for the 2,800-square-foot, two-level project. Red maple veneer forms the envelope. White oak composes the pedestal tables, illuminated overhead by minimalist George Nelson pendant fixtures. Greige upholstered banquettes and sofas, perfectly proportioned, are custom. Terrazzo flooring mixes with large raw stones fixed into the shelving that partitions dining areas, evidence of the concept’s Chinese garden influence. “We integrated the granite used in traditional landscaping,” Wu says. “But the mason had to make the stone hollow to prevent breakage from the heavy load,” Liu adds. The limpid design also reflects how tea affected materiality. “When chef mentioned there would be a tea pairing during the meal,” Liu continues, “we were inspired to reinforce the visual and olfactory sensations of drinking.”

Sò Studio: yifan wu; mengjie liu; hongchen lin; alex zeng; nectarine yi