EATHAI
stewardship, just three Busaba Eathai’s were opened, in London’s Wardour Street, Store Street and Bird Street. Since the £21.5m takeover Phoenix have opened branches in Old Street, Panton Street, the Westfield Shopping Centre, Bicester Village near Oxford (the first to open outside London) and most recently in Floral Street, Covent Garden. Successful roll-outs are all about consistency and Busaba Eathai have got it
just about right. David Archer Architects were appointed to take responsibility for the most recent openings and they have managed to retain all the key defining aspects of the original design within each of the buildings they’ve worked on. The interiors are atmospheric, warm and tactile. Materials include hardwood, slate, patinated bronze and teak, which is used for the trademark communal dining tables that sit beneath the glow of soft lighting. And like Wagamama before, there’s always a glimpse of the kitchen at work, allowing diners the chance to see the curries, stir fries and noodle dishes being freshly prepared. For the Floral Street branch, David Archer Architects inherited the site of
Bertorelli’s restaurant, a brand that seems to be in decline. The space has been completely reconfigured to improve its ergonomic design: the shop front is more prominent, two new lifts have been added, a new fire escape installed, a skylight has been added at the back of the restaurant on the mezzanine level, an area that suffered from a lack of natural daylight, and the bar, kitchens and lavatories have all been moved to more appropriate positions. Bespoke furniture has been supplied by hospitality specialists, Cottage Furniture (Pure CF - see advert opposite). The reconfiguration of this interior has improved the flow of the restaurant immensely and the architects deserve credit for this. Floral Street, which runs along the side of The Royal Opera House and parallel
with Long Acre, now boasts two exceptionally good and reasonably priced fast food ethnic restaurants; Busaba Eathai and Masala World. Both can be held up as shining examples of how London’s chain restaurants have improved in terms of food, service and design over the past decade. • Busaba Eathai, Floral Street, Covent Garden, London WC2 Tel: Head Office +44 (0)20 7291 1111
www.busaba.com Architects David Archer Architects +44 (0)20 7251 8555 Furniture Cottage Furniture Ltd (Pure CF) +44 (0)1785 811133
Busaba is a Thai flower Eathai is a fusion of Eat Thai
Stephen Gilmore, North Design... “Alan Yau approached us to design the Busaba visual identity back in 1999. The focus of his brief was the task of creating a strong, memorable logo to help reinforce the brand across a number of locations. Design influences came from traditional Thai patterns and calligraphy. The logo is deliberately opaque in terms of legibility, the idea was to create a slightly cliquey in-the- know sort of a brand -- an antidote to other Asian fast food chains that were emerging at the time.”
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