丨巴林丨MUSK Studio

MUSK Studio is a progressive and design confident Melbourne based architecture practice. MUSK Studio provides architectural services with a focus on materiality and sustainable design, from concept, planning and documentation through to completion.

400 Gradi Bahrain

Hailing from Brunswick in Melbourne, the Italian restaurant, 400 Gradi has opened its first international restaurant in Bahrain.

Working with a brief that sought to envelope the restaurant’s classic Italian atmosphere within a luxuriously polished finish, the initial challenge presented itself in the form of a cavernous space, filled with daylight through a multistorey wall of glass that celebrated grand sky views and waterfront expanses. While beautiful in itself, this deeply contrasted with the vertically constrained and darker toned character distinctive of 400 Gradi’s intimate and cultured dining experience.

Taking design cues from the Melbourne restaurants, the use of a massive black-concrete span over the entry compresses the grand height and draws the eye into the interior beneath a darkly-textured ceiling of smoked timber, antique brass and black Venetian plaster.

Gazing further into the restaurant, an observer is provided ample opportunity to pause on nostalgic wall treatments, fine cabinetry detailing and stylish furniture before the eye is drawn over the white marble counters of the open plan kitchen to zero in on the hearth on which the restaurant stands – a lavish brace of glistening bronze mosaic pizza ovens.

Setting back from the hearth, the diner relaxes into a richly appointed interior of chocolate leathers, smoky timbers and bronze tones that exude an abundance of sophistication. The contemporary design intentionally draws together a material palette inspired by the industrial edginess of a suburban heartland and luxury chic of central city to create a warmly welcoming restaurant with loads of kerb appeal.

Arriving at the waterfront windows, a dramatic shift in scale re-immerses the diner back into the wondrous waterfront on which the restaurant is located. The sudden moment is an easy metaphor for the same transition experienced between the archetypal Italian restaurant and piazza.

Under the careful curation of the founding owners, MUSK collaborated with a swath of highly skilled kitchen, lighting and furniture designers, to deliver an interior design that captures the heart and soul of the highly regarded Melbourne restaurant.