Mayfair has long been associated with sultry member’s clubs, late-night gentleman’s bars and exclusive (and expensive) restaurants. It is the place for drinking and dining destinations with ritzy interiors that serve suitably decadent dishes. Some might argue this is part of its charm. Others believe this plush pocket has been lacking something less posey. Felizia Berchtold and Oskar Kohnen, founders of design studio Tutto Bene, sit in the latter camp. So, when they came to design the scheme for Nightingale, an all-day eatery soon to open in W1, they knew they wanted to do something different. ‘We didn’t want it to look like its neighbours,’ says Oskar. ‘It had to be timeless, elegant and classic, but also warm, functional and comfortable.’
Nightingale marks the first completed project for the bright young firm. It’s been a whirlwind year for Felizia and Oskar, who met at Milan Design Week 2023 and shortly after found romance and a reason to work together. While Oskar had been running his namesake architectural and interiors practice for ten years, Felizia had long since transitioned from designing products, where she started out, to spaces, be they for private or retail projects. Tutto Bene – which playfully translates to ‘OK’ in Italian, suggesting the duo’s optimistic and straightforward ethos – presented them with a chance for a fresh start; one which would allow them to draw on each other’s strengths and specialities, which is precisely how they approached this project.
The 30-seater establishment was concieved to pay homage to the coffee houses and museum and theatre cafés found in European cities like Berlin or Vienna – namely Café Museum designed by Adolf Loos in the Austrian capital – where one has the pleasure of whiling away hours with no eyebrows raised. ‘We found ourselves asking why there aren’t places like that in London,’ says Oskar, who, like Felizia, is a German native. ‘Here there is a big takeaway culture and everyone is always on the move. We wanted to create a café for people to enjoy in a more leisurely way.’
Indeed, Nightingale is the kind of place one won’t be in a rush to leave. Walking into the space, ‘it feels like a foyer,’ as Oskar puts it. The bright and airy interiors are at once opulent and inviting, avant-garde and inclusive. Floor-to-ceiling sash windows flood the room with natural light and frame an idyllic, tree-lined courtyard where 30 more guests can dine alfresco. Inside, there are fluted white walls and green cement tiles, inspired by the hues of the leaves outside, run underfoot. A statement stainless steel bar – from which bartenders will serve coffee during the day and aperitivos into the evening – draws the eye, as does a charming Dietrich Burger lithograph dated 1983 that sits behind it.
But perhaps the most striking thing about the space is the ‘Satellite Pendant’: a series of five pleated chandeliers that spin overhead as if dancing. These fabric-and-steel objects, which feel more akin to a contemporary art installation than a typical light fixture, were created in collaboration with Austrian brand Kalmar. In another nod, incidentally, the triangular sconces on the space’s mirrored mosaic columns – a tribute to those in the Paris nightclub Chez Régine – are one of its vintage designs.
But the spinning pendants aren’t the only new pieces dreamed up for the space. In fact, every piece of furniture is a product by Tutto Bene. ‘As we started to develop the scheme, we realised that everything within it needed to be bespoke,’ says Felizia. There are the gorgeous saddle-leather-and-wood chairs, for instance, and the beautifully designed wooden tables they’re set with. ‘Then we made wall lights to match the pendant and so on,’ Felizia continues. ‘This makes the project really special to us as designers. It hasn’t just been about the space, but about considering everything within it.’
Nightingale, 1 Dover Yard, London W1. For more information about Tutto Bene, visit tuttobenestudio.com
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