The expansion of Nobu’s hospitality empire continues with the debut of Nobu Hotel Barcelona. Housed across the former Gran Hotel Torre de Catalunya, the sumptuous and sexy 250-room property features a design by Rockwell Group that captures the joie de vivre of the Spanish locale through the brand’s innovative, imaginative lens.
“It was a thrill to be able to mine the design and architectural history of Barcelona for inspiration,” says Rockwell principal and studio leader Eva Longoria. “We went deep into the archives to research Antoni Gaudí’s Park Güell. His organic forms, inspired by nature and animals, create an entirely new world within the city. We wanted to achieve that same feeling.”
A garden of tall bamboo trees planted before a rammed earth-inspired wall establishes a meditative arrival experience. A bright orange woven screen serves as an abstracted Shinto gate around the entry vestibule. Textured limestone and wood adorn the double-height lobby, which is flanked by the main lobby lounge and a monumental, rough stone lobby bar that’s lined in pale, griddled wood.
A grand staircase, accentuated by a large-scale suspended artwork, links guests to the hotel’s public spaces
The onsite Nobu restaurant crowns the property, inviting guests to dine against a panoramic backdrop of the Catalan Capital. Kintsugi-inspired ceilings are accented by live-edge walnut panels detailed with a gold crackling effect, while cracked blue ceramic ceilings above the backlit onyx bar complement columns clad with sculptural blue and white ceramics. A river rock wall serves as the backdrop for the sushi bar as well.
Vibrant, saturated wallcoverings wrap guestroom corridors in a gradient of green and blue that complements carpets underfoot. Each accommodation is punctuated with bronze detailing found on closets, bars, desks, walls, and beyond. Custom plaster artwork depicting Nobu’s signature swoosh pattern is suspended above headboards, while slabs of stone travertine inlayed with bronze make an ornate statement in guestroom bathrooms. The presidential suite, the centerpiece of the guestroom lineup, boasts a sculptural Japanese tea hearth at its core made from rough, carved stone, while its bathroom is equipped with stone, cedar wood, and a traditional Japanese soaking tub.
“Nobu Barcelona was an opportunity to take all of the Nobu elements we’ve been playing with for years—the Japanese-inspired materiality and texture, the drama and theatricality of communal spaces like the lobby and the rooftop restaurant/bar, the celebration of the artistry of chef Nobu’s food—and knit them together with an iconic European city that has its own beloved references and culture,” adds Rockwell partner and studio leader Greg Keffer. “The result is this really unexpected blend of color, form, and craft.”
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