Restaurant Bar & Grill, Manchester City Centre

Metropolitan Restaurants Limited

The Restaurant occupied the ground and first-floor level of an existing building on a prominent corner site in the heart of Manchester. The ground floor was formerly Lloyd Davies a well-known designer furniture retail shop, which was moved into the basement level. Prior to this, it was the site of one of Terence Conran’s first Habitat stores. The first floor was previously offices with no direct link to the ground floor.

The existing space for the restaurant was long and narrow and the design accentuated this linearity. The entrance to the restaurant is off John Dalton Street under a glass canopy projecting over the pavement. The canopy continued internally over the full length of a long bar which reaches out to the back of the space.

In addition to the main bar, the ground floor offered casual dining, whilst the first floor accommodated the main restaurant and kitchen. We recognised that it is often difficult for a first floor restaurant to succeed and so we set out to provide a dramatic staircase to aid the transition from the ground floor. The stair comprises timber treads suspended on 3mm stainless steel cables which float over a reflecting pool and waterfall.

At the first floor level, the space was enlarged with a new rooftop structure perched on the pre-existing podium on John Dalton Street. A simple folded plane of pre-patented copper defined the new space and cantilevered over Ridgefield to announce the restaurant. Full-height frameless glazing contained the space around the perimeter offering the experience of dining off the street. Articulated roof lights in the copper roof canopy allowed daylight into the centre of the space, ensuring maximum transparency from the street.