Before With just 1020 square feet to work with, an 8-foot-wide storefront and extremely narrow passageways, designers at New York-based Studios GO Intl. had their work cut out to make this Prince Street tenement a space for salads and sandwiches. Plans included a panini prep kitchen, coffee bar, menu boards and room for 44 seats and 22 tables. An existing rear courtyard also needed to be enclosed for year-round dining. “Looking at the process and how they transformed this difficult space, it really is a true renovation,” says Luxottica’s King.
During One of the most important aspects of the renovation was enclosing the courtyard to create the necessary extra 420 square feet for dining, panini prep and customer pickup. Porcelain tile with a metallic glaze in the prep kitchen provided a low-cost solution for a food service-grade wall and counter finish. Patterns and textures on the ceiling, wall and floor create the illusion of a roomier space.
After The storefront connects with sidewalk traffic through floor-to-ceiling glass doors that can be opened completely. A wrapping plane of terrazzo tile encompasses the dining counter, menu boards and recessed lighting. Together with a mirrored niche, the angular plane creates the sense of a wider space and draws guests toward the back. Designers kept hints of the building’s original exposed brick and tin ceiling. Skylights in the dining area give the space an open, atrium-like feel. AGI’s Sparks notes, “It’s an amazing transformation that’s inventive, but not over the top. I like how they used different textures and materials to break up the narrow space.”
Client: Panino Sportivo, New York
Design: Studios GO Intl.., New York — Gregory Okshteyn, design principal; Anthony Neff, project designer
General Contractor: Fernandez Development, Union City, N.J.
Wallcoverings: Knoll Textiles, New York
Tile: Nemo Tile, New York; Stone Source, New York; Bisazza, Milan, Italy
Furniture: Bernhardt Design, Lenoir, N.C.; WB Wood NY, New York
Photography: Studios GO Intl., New York
Check out more first place winners of the Retail Renovation Competition.