Italy is famous for espresso and perhaps even more so people clamoured up to the bar to have a jolt, but not so much to sit and sip as I found in Bavaria. I met up with my sunny Californian cousin and her Deutsche husband in his hometown Munich. I had never been and wasn’t sure what else to expect except for beer and sausage. And there was plenty of that with the infamous Oktoberfest in full swing, which we popped into and out of and back onto gentler and quieter streets in record time. And I mean quieter, strangely and reflectively quiet which I think these
interior eatery spaces show.
These mostly independent places didn't necessarily rely on their brand or product, but on ambiance--color and texture used sparsely but effectively like a bouquet of fuscia flowers on a table without flatware. Designed quiet spaces for us to drink a cup of coffee, read a paper, navigate and mostly absent of music to listen to. True to nordic design (at times austere), steers our attention towards the delicacy of light and the use of wood (be it raw or tavern stained); its natural warmth which is a must when rainy and cold sets in.
The food reflected these spaces as well, from more experimental international style dishes to the hearty traditional and familiar. Much like a brand, each space put you right where you expected to be and what you expected to have. The client went from passive observer to active participant in the whole experience of created space and all of this via which clothes rack you chose to hang your coat on or wine chalice to drink from.
