Superstar chef Daniel Boulud has debuted his first offering in Boston at the Mandarin Oriental, Boston. The 148-room hotel is home to Bar Boulud. The venue, with 68 seats in the main dining room, and 82 in thebar/lounge area, follows in the footsteps of Bar Boulud in New York, also in collaboration with Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group, and, like the New York eatery, showcases French bistro-style food.
For the interiors, Adam Tihany of Tihany Design wanted to create a space with enough food-referencing wit to appeal to guests who like clever design without resorting to obvious or heavily themed concepts.
At first glance, the space reads as an elegant study in timeless chic. Burgundy accents, a glass étagère, zinc bar top and wood and stone details create a welcoming ambience.
However, a closer look shows off the slightly ironic sensibility in the space. The artwork has a wine theme running through it. Feature walls are made from wine crates. The private dining room can be closed off with a modern version of a barn door.
Projects like this illustrate how much creativity has been redefined as the ability to think inside the box, then paint that box bright orange, dress it up and take it out. Sometimes, the coolest designs are about bending the rules, not breaking them outright.
//