Toronto’s North of Brooklyn Pizzeria has opened up a second
location! The pizza is hot and the
design is even HOTTER!
My friend Dave Dworkind was given the lucky task of
designing their new restaurant from top to bottom. He worked on everything from the logo and
website to the interiors and custom furnishings. It was one of those rare and amazing
opportunities where one designer can work on all aspects and keep a certain
consistency and style throughout. Dave
shared some photos of the new place with me yesterday and I couldn’t wait to
hear a little more about his design process!
With this location being more of a take away and delivery
spot he decided to maximize on the kitchen space and kept a small dine-in area at the front for those who want to gobble down a quick slice and be on their
way. The seating area consists of a bar
area with 4 stools and a table that sits another 4. It is in the front of the semi-basement
location and the southern light streams in during the day, which Dave says makes
it feel a less “basementy”.
The clients wanted tile on the floor and walls for easy
cleaning so Dave felt the ceiling was a good place to add some warmth. During his brainstorming process Dave likes
to write down a pallet of materials before getting started on the design. For this project he added cardboard into the
mix as it has an obvious relation to pizza boxes. “I had the idea to use a staggered array of
honeycomb cardboard strips with the edges exposed giving a warm, textured look
to the ceiling.” One challenged he was
of course faced with was the building code’s strict flame spread ratings at
exits. “Luckily there are many
non-toxic, natural products on the market that make cardboard incombustible!”
To further emphasize the linearity of the cardboard strips,
Dave lit the space with a random pattern of linear Edison bulbs with custom
fixtures designed by Montreal’s Lambert & Fils.
The custom furniture including the rotating pizza stand and
gorgeous iPad stand (used as the Point-of Service) were designed and built by Brother’s Dressler, a Norwegian brother duo who in Dave’s words “are
killing it right now in Toronto!”
So, there you have it!
Great pizza, beautifully crafted (local) products and a kick-ass
design! If you’re in Toronto, go check
it out!
