Mezban by Intrinsic Design Studio
This restaurant is one of a kind, blending contemporary style aesthetics with an Art Deco vibe at the same time giving you the privacy to spend a good time with your loved ones.
Kalaburagi is a fast-growing 3 tier city in Karnataka. The city recently inaugurated its first airport. Along with numerous medical and engineering colleges that are greeted with students coming over from all parts of the country, there is still a noticeable cultural difference as compared to metro cities. Majority of the restaurants in the city receive a predominantly male footfall, the main reason being that women or family groups demand their own privacy, preferring to be tucked away and secluded.
The word "Mezban" is derived from Persian roots which means host while "Mezbani" means hosting or arranging a feast for the guests. This restaurant is one of a kind, blending contemporary style aesthetics with an Art Deco vibe at the same time giving you the privacy to spend a good time with your loved ones.
The concept essentially adapted the contemporary style in terms of functionality and Art Deco aesthetically. Keeping the walls and ceiling as neutral as possible, colours were introduced in terms of soft furnishings and hanging pendant lights throughout the place. The layout is mainly divided into entrance & waiting area, a family dining space, the general dining area (or what we call men’s dining here) and the kitchen.
The entrance area consists of the reception and waiting. All the billing activities and take away orders are taken here. Even though this is a very general concept in the design field, something basic which every designer follows, this is only the 3rd restaurant that follows this concept here. Or else these counters or billing desks are placed right in the center of the dining areas where the owner keeps an eye on the transactions and the waiters/ and other service areas from this counter.
Placing this reception and waiting right at the entrance also helped the owners control the crowd really easily once it opened, also giving a little privacy to the guests dining in the general dining area.
Two arch screens in MS were installed right next to the waiting area for the same purpose privacy for male guests- which is again pretty uncommon here. The dining starts right at the entrance doors at other places here. The reception area is treated with wooden reapers and hangings over the reception. Bronze mirrors were extensively used to enhance the illusion of volume.
The general dining area starts right after the arch screens, with sofas along the length of the wall and chairs on the other side. The shell height was already 10 feet when the site was handed over, with haphazard beams everywhere. Now since this is an extremely hot dry region, it was important to keep as much volume as possible intact. Aesthetic considerations led to the inclusion arches in the ceiling as well. Fans were installed out of climatic necessity since reliance on electricity here for the air conditioners is not feasible and there is lack of space to set up a generator system.
A small corner in the general dining area has been converted into a dining space for bigger groups. The triangular pieces wall paneling in this room was made out of the plywood wastage we had in the end.
Next is the kitchen area which was completely executed by another consultant.
A pre-existing niche near the building's staircase was converted into an open hand wash area with dark cladding on the wall and back lit mirrors - again a new concept for people here, who generally prefer traditional washrooms here even for washing their hands after dining.
The family dining area was placed right at the entrance so that these users get their privacy right from the moment they enter this place. The family dining has its own hand wash area, with sofas along the wall and chairs on the other side as well here. This is partitioned by arches and frosted glass from the men's only dining area.
Darker shades in the family area were used to make it feel more private & comfortable as compared to the other dining area. Extensive use of bronze mirrors in both the dining areas added another design element and helped make the space look a little larger. White marble cladding and MS screens were used on the side wall. The tables and chairs were directly procured, and the sofa custom made.
Only a month or so after the launch, another restaurant just 100 metres down the line attempted to replicate the design, suggesting that it has had an impact.
Project: Mezban, A Fine Dining Restaurant
Location: Kalaburagi, Karnataka
Design House: Intrinsic Design Studio
Design Team: Shoaib Ilyas, Abdul Majeed, Tasmiya Tanaz, Sneha Aute