By suspending golden rods from the ceiling and dressing the walls with polished wood paneling, Adam D. Tihany, founder of his namesake New York design firm, brought elegance and intimacy to Amber, the modern French restaurant inside the Landmark, Mandarin Oriental Hong Kong.

Fourteen years later, Amber’s chef Richard Ekkebus was reimagining fine dining with a refined menu of dairy- and gluten-free dishes and looked again to Tihany to reflect the kitchen’s growth. “I worked with Adam closely to redefine the design direction of the new Amber, as much as the initial design had become iconic and had well aged,” says Ekkebus. “But to rewrite the Amber chapter was a must to sustain its success.” To retain Amber’s reputation as a culinary hotspot, Tihany says the mission became “to define the nuances of this evolution and bring the vision to life through new interiors.”

“The new design has a lightness that mirrors the evolved style of cooking, and the natural materials and organic lines speak to the careful consideration and treatment of each ingredient,” he adds. Now, bronze ring-shaped chandeliers complement wood and bronze tables, and the curvy, low partitions that meander through the dining room create as much visual depth as privacy. Details such as the wall upholstery’s embroidered circular patterns and the ripple motif carpet bring a softness to the space.

Despite the update, there is “still a strong sense of place and personality that Amber fans recognize from the moment they enter the restaurant,” Tihany says. Part of the new, yet familiar look is the creation of Somm, an intimate, semi-circular wine bar evocative of a chic club with dark wood and a rich red palette. It juxtaposes the adjacent Amber and “reinforces a new paradigm in restaurants,” says Tihany, “where both casual and fine dining are synonymous with thoughtful, bespoke design.”