A talented and well-known young chef decides to move to Columbus and open his first restaurant. He selects a wonderful space in a great old building. A delicious opportunity indeed.

The primary goal of this project for Chef Richard Rosendale was to create a comfortable but contemporary dining space in a building originally constructed in 1924 as a car dealership. The solution was to let the space speak for itself. Rather than "fill it up" – the centerpiece of the design is a pair of super-scale wood clad walls (16 feet tall). Pushed to the perimeter - the two help define the central dining space but are also visible through the 18-foot tall windows that define the other two edges of the main dining area. One of the walls becomes the bar back (carved out to receive bottles and equipment as well as art). The other wall acts as a partial screen for the stair that connects to the upper dining room. The stair is accessed through an oversized portico cut into the screen wall.

Upstairs the two walls assume different roles – one becoming a wall of seating and the other providing "windows" through which selected views of the lower level and the streetscape beyond are visible.

Ultimately the project includes a rich range of possible dining experiences in a relatively small space. Seating along the windows has the feel of a sidewalk café. Booths provide a very intimate dining experience nested in the midst of the bustle of the large dining room. Upstairs presents a more formal white-linens environment. And augmenting all of these options are seats at a concrete bar and a strip of outdoor dining.

Quirks of the original building footprint resulted in a relatively small space for the kitchen. Through careful and coordinated planning on the part of all parties (Chef, architect and kitchen supply company) this tight space yielded a satisfyingly efficient and surprisingly spacious feeling kitchen.