After working with the Casino Rama for the past 10 years, handling the gaming floor as well as most of the F&B outlets, Mackay Wong was brought in once again for the property’s newest venue, Cedar Restaurant. “This restaurant was created as a result of the demand that the entertainment facility puts on the property when there is an event,” explains Ron Wong, partner of the Toronto-based firm. “We needed to assist in the master planning and strategically place the venue to manage and capture the concert attendees.”

For inspiration, Wong and the design team took cues from the restaurant’s name. “According to First Nations [tribe, the owner of the casino] legends and tradition, the creator gave First Nations people cedar as one of the four sacred medicines,” Wong explains. “We expanded on this with our use of cedar and marrying it with other natural materials found in the neighboring lake country area. [The challenge] was to respectfully bridge the gap between design and the mythology.”

Cedar, and all aspects of the cedar tree, colored glass, and stone are found throughout. The entry wall is made of rectangular floating panels that represent the filter of light through shimmering trees. The brown, carpeted floor mimics the ground beneath the tree. The central column in the dining room is an architectural representation of a trunk with lit panels above that allude to the tree’s canopy. A cluster of branches floats against a stonewall that leads to the private dining room, while across the room a yellow slotted wall symbolizes a sunset. And there are tree trunks floating above the booths, and a fireplace that “represents the burning of the cedar as a welcome invitation For the creator,” explains Wong.