La Grande Brasserie is a bar and restaurant located next to the port of Pornic on the west coast of France. To be anchored in the local landscape, the general theme of the project was based on the world of the marine industry. Designers decided to work on three raw elements: concrete, wood and metal. The space is organized around the curved bar, inspired by a boat hull -and the reflection that the sea can have on it. The concrete ceiling has been kept in the raw and ventilation dicts left exposed. The raw concrete floor recalls the ceiling. An accumulation of ceiling lights illuminates the restaurant like a lighthouse in the port. Still in the industrial sphere, designers have chosen the Modèle A chair from Tolix ®, mythical chair from the french heritage, crafted with metallic sheets.

In order to warm up the atmosphere, wood was essential in the back wall of the space. It also present on top of the bar and on table tops. The restaurant harbors a four-meter long solid wood bench as if the last ocean liner had dropped it off here. The highlight is an oversized majestic wine cellar covering one of the main walls. It is made of oxidized sheets of metal, curved in the shape of the initials of La Grande Brasserie. It calls to mind the round wave forms. A fresco drawn by the french illustrator Emmanuel Bourdelais pays tribute to Pornic sailors. This is a convivial and welcoming restaurant where sailors and onlookers mix together.

Design: Agence Thomas Lavigne