Earls·67 餐厅

The work of Vancouver-based interior design studio Ste. Marie explores the juicy intersection of identity, strategy and the human codes that underpin any successful commercial space. The root of their practice is finding the perfect counterpoint of art and science – that is, balancing pragmatic strategy by helping businesses succeed through optimising business metrics, with creating a sense of narrative, awe, and allure in each project.

Their client, Earls, is a well-established, family-owned, premium casual restaurant chain with 66 locations around Canada and the US. With an ongoing mission to innovate, Earls felt it needed to refresh their existing restaurant concept so it commissioned Ste. Marie and Glasfurd + Walker to initiate Project 67. Earls wanted to push the boundaries, anticipate trends in their market sector and offer fresh experiences to the customer and workforce without compromising on the reliability and reputation of the brand.

The goal was to create a one-off prototype restaurant in Calgary, Alberta, where new ideas in food, service, and décor could be developed and tested by the company with the goal to reinvigorate this steadfast brand. The challenge was to imagine a prototype concept as something Earls would do if they had never before opened a restaurant (or 66, to be exact). The concept for Project 67 sets up what at first appear to be contradictions, but in fact are ‘complementary opposites’.

To that end the design of the interior uses a subtle mix of high and lowbrow, the materials throughout are quite elemental in nature and skew more earthy and primal than posh: basalt, bleached walnut and hot rolled steel contrast with oversized chandeliers, intricate glass installations and striking large-scale still photography. Without forsaking coherence in the overall design direction, the space is broken up into several micro zones, each offering a different experience. Because the whole space is about exploration and experiment, much of the furniture and lighting is bespoke – a deliberate strategy to avoid too much déjà-vu with regard to other restaurant environments. From the warm, inviting ‘Lobby Lounge’ and the bright, streamlined ‘Canteen’ to the casual ‘Beer Bar’ and the opulent ‘Bankers Bar’; Earls.67 is a fashion-forward embodiment of the reliability and reputation of the brand.

Read on for a Q&A with interior designers Emma Grant(EG) + Craig Stanghetta (CS).

+Tell us about your design approach.

+ What is your favourite aspect about this project?

+ How long have you been working on Earls.67? When did the project commence?

+ Explain the process of collaboration between yourself and Glasfurd + Walker? How did you two, as designers, come together? What was it like to work with another design firm? How did each of your design aesthetics inform the other?

+ What did you learn during the project?

+ Any interesting/funny/ quirky facts you could share with us?

[Interior images courtesy of Ste Marie & branding/ packing images courtesy of Glasfurd & Walker. Interior Photography by Jamie Hyatt.]