HASSELL’s Award-Winning Hospitality
Published
By
jesse
HASSELL have been awarded a 2011 Melbourne Design Award for their contribution to the design of South Yarra’s new Yarra Lane Precinct.
The Melbourne Design Awards were announced on Friday 7 October, with the HASSELL team taking out the Interior Design, Hospitality award for their work on the Yarra Lane precinct and 3 of its new restaurants – Outpost Dining Room, Mopho Noodle Bar and Deba Sushi Bar.
The project team, led by interior designers Scott Walker and Rebecca Trenorden, worked in collaboration with Bird dela Coeur architecture to bring a lively, dynamic feel to the laneway, which runs off Chapel Street.
Each of the 3 restaurants was given a distinct style and personality, to create a diverse village high-street vibe.
Mopho Noodle, inspired by a hawker’s bazaar, features pendant lights, custom patterned bamboo panels and a stitched fabric canopy-like ceiling patterned with images of Shanghai models from the 1950s.


The soft fabric of the ceiling and the dark bamboo throughout the interior create a subtle sense of intimacy.
The open-plan kitchen becomes an interactive feature of the space, giving it a casual aesthetic.


Deba Sushi Bar is more intricate, with handcrafted touches. White gloss tiling with timber edges is reminiscent of a Japanese bath house.


A Koi fish mosaic backing the banquette seating area and noren curtains bring to mind the calm and serenity of a Japanese tea garden.

The third HASSELL-designed restaurant in the precinct, Outpost Dining, has a simple aesthetic – a communal, home-style feel that is reflected in its menu and communal dining style.


The design is straightforward and traditional – an old timber shopfront and exposed service areas give a sense of honesty and frankness. Limed timbers, tessellated tiling and hand-crafted seating provide warmth and add to the welcoming, communal atmosphere.



All 3 venues have done much to activate and enliven this new Melbourne laneway.
HASSELL
hassellstudio.com
Related Articles

Events
A rollicking good story with Richards Stanisich and Royal Oak Floors
Jonathan Richards and Kirsten Stanisich discussed practice, design process and the business of running a studio at a live audience event hosted by Royal Oak Floors in Sydney.

Events
Indesign x Wilkhahn: Melbourne, where are you working?
Our latest collaboration saw a range of designers come together at Wilkhahn’s Melbourne showroom for a discussion on the workplace dynamics specific to the Victorian capital.

Events
“A journey into a whole new material world”: Plant Life at the NGV
Curator Ewan McEoin tells us about the NGV’s new exhibition on plant-based materials as alternatives to plastics, synthetic materials and other non-renewable resources.

Ideas
Beyond the panel: What makes a design event worth attending?
Ahead of Saturday Indesign, architects reflect on why smaller gatherings, unexpected voices, candid discussion and meaningful follow-up can make meeting in person genuinely worthwhile.