On the heels of the opening of Bica café in Midtown Manhattan, the Pedro family has now reintroduced Brazilian eatery Ipanema next door. The previously shuttered concept has been revived with a new bi-level address crafted by Bolt Design Group to celebrate Brazilian and Portuguese culture.
A moodier counterpoint to the vivacious Bica, Ipanema echoes its original design hallmarks while simultaneously setting a new standard for the brand. “The design was stylized in similar proportions to the original Ipanema,” says Bolt founder and lead designer Matt Dennis. “The comfort of the dining room and bar was a feeling that we sought to directly translate into the new home. It slowly pulls you into the interior revealing its true nature along the path to the main dining room and bar.”
A long hallway lined with solid oak planters and a custom handcut stone floor installation that recalls boardwalks found in the Rio de Janeiro neighborhood leads guests into the warm heart of the interior. Soft, neutral color is evoked from ropes entwined along the ceiling throughout the space, creating a unique focal point in the 80-seat dining room. Deep green and blue banquettes are offset by wood chairs and white marble tables, while a private 20-seat dining room is adorned with photography of the restaurant’s original location.
The upstairs cocktail bar is a key attraction as well. Clad with red oak, the striking bar is complemented by a rippling champagne-hued mirror on the back bar as well as a striated tree form accented with hanging ivy to infuse intimacy. “The bar is meant to evoke the balance between the elegance of the execution of the space and the natural qualities of the materials,” Dennis says of the space, where details each “work together to form a haptic experience that reveals the material’s true ‘wild’ nature.”
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