Architecture studio Al-Jawad Pike drew on wabi-sabi design principles for the Holy Carrot restaurant on London‘s Portobello Road, which features stone, timber and clay plaster.

Founded by former Vogue Ukraine producer Irina Linovich, the restaurant was designed with muted tones to amplify the menu’s “colourful and lively” plant-based dishes, which include ingredients ranging from coral tooth mushrooms to grilled watermelon.

Holy Carrot is a plant-based restaurant on Portobello Road

“The brief called for a warm, neutrally toned space influenced by nature and the concept of wabi-sabi,” said Al-Jawad Pike co-founder Jessam Al-Jawad, referring to the Japanese design philosophy celebrating imperfection and impermanence.

“This palette was also inspired by the desire to use materials that feel natural and earthy, adding a sense of curated domesticity to the space,” he told Dezeen.

The seating area features neutral undulating walls

Holy Carrot is spread across a street-level restaurant and basement bathrooms accessed via a flight of low-lit stairs.

The seating area is characterised by undulating walls clad in a tadelakt, a traditional Moroccan lime-based plaster, selected for its “smooth, visually varied surface”, said Al-Jawad.

Cream, white and grey terrazzo flooring complements this neutral-hued backdrop, while a textured clay plaster ceiling was designed with a stippled surface to improve the space’s acoustics.

At the centre of the restaurant, the studio placed a curved brushed aluminium bar, which was positioned underneath a geometric light installation that loosely echoes its shape.

“We selected aluminium after an extensive search for a material that would contrast with yet complement the pale walls and floors,” considered Al-Jawad.

“This material, being lighter and softer in tone than steel, allowed us to introduce a reflective, functional surface with natural variations,” he added.

A large skylight characterises the back of the dining space

Thick walnut dining tables and black-stained chairs were placed throughout the seating area, adding a “heavier contrast” to the restaurant’s more organic forms. A large rounded skylight floods the back of the space with natural light.

Downstairs, the bathrooms serve as a moodier antidote to the neutral floor above. The cavernous walls and ceilings were finished in earthy red clay, while a thick slab of red travertine was chosen for the built-in sinks.

Amorphous mirrors are illuminated by thin tubular sconce lights that emit a soft glow.

The clay-clad bathrooms are “almost womb-like”

“We wanted to give the space a grounded, carved-from-the-earth feel,” said Al-Jawad. “The bathrooms were designed as an intense, almost womb-like space to provide a sense of theatre for diners.”

“The earthy tones of red and pink help to create a warm and sensual atmosphere, offering a unique contrast to the rest of the space,” added Linovich.

Known for its subtle material and colour palettes, Al-Jawad Pike recently won the 2024 Neave Brown Award for Housing for the Chowdury Walk housing development in Hackney. The studio previously applied pigmented concrete blockwork to the exterior and interior of a Peckham house extension.

The photography is by Genevieve Lutkin.

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