Restaurant SABOTEN offers meals centering on Japanese cutlet. It is located in Canal City Shopping Mall in Hakata, one of the major cities in Japan. For the façade, on the upper wall, we utilized Japanese traditional material called “Sudare” (bamboo blinds that control the amount of light) in order to make surface-emitted boxes. This makes the shop even more sophisticated. Floors in the entrance are designed with “Tobi-ishi”. This enables to switch customers’ moods naturally whenever they enter this restaurant.

There are characteristic features on the walls. First, wall-surface-base with big curve designs are coated with plaster (Japanese paints). And in front of this wall, poles are placed at equal distances. In addition, there are “Kumiko” between the poles (woods that are placed finely in the manner of grid design which is Japanese traditional technique). “Kumiko” grids are randomly designed and are set in between.

Through these poles and walls, and indirect lighting from the back side of the bench seat, you can feel the unite atmosphere through these layers of designs. We calculated the reflection through the mirrors and placed consecutive poles and beam. This well-organized appearance evokes image of Japanese architecture.

Farther in the restaurant, there are seats that are not visible from the entrance. Here, we chose an accent color to alter the atmosphere in this area. Only those who use here will realize the amazement of the restaurant. We focused on the changes in details. To make a contrast with the rough stone wall, we used “Japanese traditional patterned paper” for the black wall. At the end of the room, symbolic wooden panels cover the wall surface. By designing the ceiling, it makes a good spatial balance.

On the whole, we have arranged Japanese traditional designs into contemporized designs. Fine and comfortable atmosphere create Japanese-style that will attract a wide range of Japanese customers as well as foreign tourists.

Designer: Aiji Inoue/ DOYLE COLLECTION CO.,LTD.
Built area: 119.59sqm
Construction: OOMORI-SOKEN co.,ltd.
Photo credits: Satoru Umetsu/ Nacasa&Partners