THE CROSSBOUNDARIES completed The Brewery where the thick blue walls stand tall and proud, the roof almost floats in sunlight, arches dance and open the way to the outside – while inside, textures and flavours, nostalgia and memories keep the conversations brewing.

Century-old arches that are witness to the play of light and shadow. The gentle buzz of industrial fermenters brewing nearby. Jazz music enlivening a voluminous space full of lustre and laughter…These are vignettes from The Crossboundaries’ fresh offering ‘The Brewery’.

The story of The Brewery, a delectable new restobar in Vadodara, is one of a classic building reincarnating into a second life. The Brewery is located in the reinvented city-centre of Alembic Art District, in the company of a museum, art-galleries and public spaces which have re-adapted the city’s industrial heritage. In this context, the design approach taken by The Crossboundaries was to begin a conversation between the old and the new; while respecting the building’s original skeleton and structure, but infusing a new soul through value-added activities. From creating a new interior design language for the old space, to arousing a cheerful ambience – the design intent worked on several layers to make the resto-bar a vibrant public place for the city.

In line with the current trend of health food and probiotic beverages, the Brewery offers a selection of special home-brewed kombucha. In fact, a plethora of the industrial building’s original fermenters and exposed distillation equipment are preserved and used as brewing tanks to churn out fresh, bubbly kombucha – taking the design intervention one step further into the menu itself. Large-scale fermenters are visible in the open grounds outside, while within the food preparation area, smaller kegs or brewing tanks demonstrate the process of fermentation, seen through clear glass.

The 3200 sq.ft space is essentially a long shed with a pitched roof propped up on newly retrofitted trusses. Within this large volume, the designers explored the possibility of a multi-level experience by introducing a mezzanine – under which the kitchen and services are tucked away. The seating area is spread across an open layout, peppered with an eclectic mix of seating options; high tables, couple’s dining or couches for small groups. The short end of the seating space has a raised wooden podium which doubles up as a performance area for live music and open-mic events. On this wall, a trio of arches with full-scale mirrors creates the illusion of depth, reflecting not just the open bar, but also good times, infinitely!

All across the Brewery’s walls, the all pervasive shade of Prussian-blue creates a cool backdrop for the dance of light and shadows through the skylight and arches. The city’s namesake marble, the Baroda Green, is an exquisite choice for flooring, adding a velveteen feel to an ambiance soaked in nostalgia. The marble is also used on the upright stand for the ‘community table’ – a long and tall seating option used for events, workshops and common activities. Behind this area, the swanky open bar invites guests to pull up a bar stool and enjoy a fizzy drink. The bar counter is a spectacular statement piece in itself, designed with fine onyx, lit up from within – reminiscent of Jazz bars in New York. In this vein, metal casks and other brewing equipment are exposed behind the bar, from which fresh kombucha is filled on tap. The kitchen area, with a pizza dome is visible behind a clear glass partition. Services such as a/c ducting and pipelines are exposed but painted in matt-black, keeping the industrial look and feel intact.

Design: THE CROSSBOUNDARIES Design Team: Forum Jariwala, Vijay Dhabi, Rishabh Prajapati, Neel Patel, Shailesh Boghani & Harsh Boghani PMC Team: Alembic Real Estate Photography: Vinay Panjwani

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