V4 Wood Flooring is the high-quality wood floor of choice in thousands of homes across the UK but is also the specified wood choice across commercial installations from restaurants and shops to offices and event spaces.
A fine example of this is the recent installation in the hugely popular Burger & Lobster restaurants. Renowned in London, they have just opened their first branch outside of the Capital in Cardiff.
The design team behind the installation was DesignLSM, who specialise in the creation of original brand identities and graphic design, RIBA accredited architectural services and interior design for the hospitality and retail industry.
Steve La Bouchardiere and Simon McCarthy founded DesignLSM in 1988 and over the last 26 years, the practice has grown around their creative passion, combining a holistic approach to design, encouraging a spirit of collaboration with clients, colleagues and partners to deliver memorable customer experiences.
Their brief for this project was to create a Burger & Lobster which would be a destination statement restaurant bringing the brand to Cardiff with confidence. As the first Burger & Lobster outside of London, the restaurant is located on a huge site, the biggest so far for the restaurant, with historic significance to the city being located in the old fish market. The space needed to convey the Burger & Lobster brand top to bottom, but on a scale to suit such a formidable space.
DesignLSM said, “It was important to bring a comfortable low key warmth to the vast space, maintaining the architecture and history of the building. An additional floor was added to create the loft area; cast iron column capitals and a network of arches create a grid. The grid frames the features of the maranti timber clad kitchen pass and the large roll top bar. The various seating arrangements then feel more intimate because of the structures that define them.”
“Flooring choice was really important and we first met V4 Wood Flooring at the 100% Design Show held annually in London. I was impressed with the quality and choice the collections offered and decided to use the company as they offered the product quality and tone I was looking for to maintain the subtle warmth we wanted to exude in the space.”
450m2 of V4 Wood Flooring’s planks has been installed in the restaurant. The rustic floor has rich earth tones, which met the brief perfectly, are produced with layers of UV cured colour oil buffed into the embossed surface accentuating the natural grain. The embossed effect is produced as the soft grain is removed by a succession of steel brushes which leave just the smooth hard grain. This process makes the floor extremely hard wearing and perfect for the daily wear and tear of a busy restaurant. The floor is also FSC 100% certified for total assurance it is a sustainable product choice.
“The product, price and customer service experienced dealing direct with V4 were all exemplary and, as the designers we were really happy with the overall service. The result is a space which is immediately recognisable as Burger & Lobster, and stamps the arrival of the brand in the city. The space feels relaxed and intimate but generates a buzz by the open kitchen pass and island bar as the atmosphere filters through the restaurant. The scale, although formidable, never overwhelms because of the beautiful cast iron structure, which breaks the space down to a more human scale, and is softened by the warm timber tones, red leather, lighting and wood floor.”
DesignLSM has a long-standing relationship with the Goodmans Group, the company behind Burger & Lobster; having designed all of the Burger & Lobster restaurants and worked with them on their other concepts including; Smack Lobster Deli, Beast, Rex & Mariano.
The multi discipline practice works on iconic brands worldwide building successful brands and creating unique environments, to which Burger & Lobster in Cardiff is a testament to.
