Auburn, Vespertine, Sidecar Doughnuts among 2019 AIA|LA Restaurant Design Award winners

Honor Award, Restaurant: Vespertine (Culver City, California.) Designed by: Eric Owen Moss Architects

Jury comments: This could have easily turned very contrived, but didn’t. | It channels your experience of the building itself. | The experience is the architecture, the design, and the food.

Merit Award, Restaurant: Westheimer Restaurant (Houston, Texas.) Designed by: A Parallel Architecture

Jury comments: This is an example of how you can emphasize function while still having good design. | This is obviously—from the layout of the tables—very functional, very efficient, but there are elements you look for in good modern design.

Merit Award, Restaurant: Loro (Austin, Texas.) Designed by: Michael Hsu Office of Architecture

Jury comments: It’s beautifully designed—the exposed beams and how the materials are managed with the combination of the different woods. | All of the it is very well done. | It has a modern ranch feel. | We like the paying of homage to the Texas oak roads. It makes us want to be in Austin.

Citation Award, Restaurant + People's Choice Award: Prime + Proper (Detroit, Michigan.) Designed by: McIntosh Poris Associates

Jury comments: It takes full advantage of the location—of being in Detroit. | It’s statement making: it telegraphs opulence and decadence. | It is almost like being in a gallery.

Citation Award, Restaurant: Jeune et Jolie (Carlsbad, California.) Designed by: Bells + Whistles

Jury comments: A Parisian bistro filtered through a California-beach lens. | It’s familiar but also feels like something we haven’t seen quite put together. | The kitchen really adds to the entire experience and the dining mood. | The layout takes advantage of the space, bringing all of this roundness to it. | For a small space, it’s very balanced.

Citation Award, Restaurant: La Lucha (Houston, Texas.) Designed by: Michael Hsu Office of Architecture

Jury comments: Great details. Whether it’s the cabinetry or some of the wall art or the pattern in the ceiling – even if it isn’t always entirely cohesive—at every point, there was a great amount of thought given to details. | We like its quirkiness.

CAFÉ/BARS

Honor Award, Café/Bar + People's Choice Award: Sidecar Doughnuts (Del Mar, California.) Designed by: Fleetwood Fernandez Architects

Jury comments: It plays really well into the theme of the donuts. | In the scale of that space, it’s very well proportioned, it’s very well executed. | The way the menus are integrated into the wall, the flavors being on the wall—is very well thought out.

Merit Award, Café/Bar: The Heroic (Santa Monica, California.) Designed by: Preen, Inc

Jury comments: This was a striking space—the way the light fixture comes from the upper floor down to the lower floor. | The use of the textures—it’s not overdone. | It offers a lot of visual eye candy without overdoing it. | The furniture design adds a lot to the design.

Citation Award, Café/Bar: P6 (Austin, Texas.) Designed by: Michael Hsu Office of Architecture

Jury comments: We like the natural light and the openness. | It’s nice when you see that it doesn’t seem to be in a building; it could be in a backyard, it could be anywhere.

LOUNGE/NIGHTCLUBS

Merit Award, Lounge/Nightclub: Raised By Wolves (San Diego, California.) Designed by: BASILE Studio

Jury comments: We respect the vision. | The atrium with the carousel is a very well thought out space. | The pivoting wall and the layout are interesting.

Merit Award, Lounge/Nightclub + People's Choice Award: Bar Henry (Los Angeles, California.) Designed by: Aero Collective

Jury comments: A very warm inviting vibe. | It draws you in. | The space between the bar and the seating area is really thought out for people to mingle or dance. | It’s a space meant for people.

Citation Award, Lounge/Nightclub: The Fillmore New Orleans (New Orleans, Louisiana.) Designed by: EwingCole

Jury comments: We love the touch of the candles of different lengths over and arranged around the bar. It highlights the voodoo theme nicely. | This is all about the mood.

Citation Award, Lounge/Nightclub: LOUIX LOUIS, (Toronto, Canada.) Designed by: DesignAgency

Jury comments: The details stand out: whether it’s a light fixture or some of the bar fixtures, there is a level of attention to detail you might not see at a hotel bar. | We like the play on the theme of liquid against cut glass.

2019 RDA Jury:

Ezequiel Farca, Intl. Assoc. AIA – CEO/Founder, Ezequiel Farca; Hans Rockenwagner – Owner, Rockenwagner Bakeries/Cafes; and Garrett Snyder – Food Editor, Los Angeles Magazine