Our brief

Bondi Green is the second space that Run For The Hills has designed for the Daisy Green Collection, following our work creating Scarlett Green in Soho. This latest venue is West London’s newest and most expansive al fresco bar and restaurant, set within a huge, light-filled, double height space at the base of the landmark Brunel Building, beside the peaceful waters of the Grand Union canal in Paddington basin.

The venue has super high ceilings and a raw but refined concrete backdrop, dreamed up by Brunel Building architects Fletcher Priest, a perfect urban oasis blank canvas for us to build upon. Our brief was to create a pared-back, semi-industrial scheme with touches of glamour. So we left some of the walls beautifully raw and untouched, aside from soft washes of light. Others we knocked back further and embellished with decorative effects and we injected a luxe feel by playing with dramatic curved forms and arches within the bar.

Monolithic cocktail bar

The venue’s hero bar is huge, which we had great fun designing. With two cocktail stations and a dedicated tank beer zone and dedicated section for wine tasting.

We concepted the bar around the beating heart of the mixologists, but also making sure to create the perfect ‘view’ straight down the barrel of the the Pizza oven set behind the bar, offering tantalising views of the flickering flames, dough paddle flips and perfectly crisp slices being served up throughout the day and night. We kept the bar finishes light and fresh, but industrial, in a pale, refined concrete. The faceted, fluted bar front, softly washed with warm light is raw, but we contrasted the urban finishes with an ultra glamorous, deep and swirling, seaweed toned marble counter-top, with a luxurious double bull nose edge. The decorative floor tiling zoning the bar is reminiscent of our floor design encircling the bar in sister venue Scarlett Green in Soho, but this time in paler tones of soft greys and coral. The back bar is dominated by a range of curved arches set at different heights, in dusky coloured pigmented plaster, courtesy of another Run For The Hills favourite supplier, Clayworks. The arches are picked out with soft lighting, highlighting the curves and casting a glow onto the antique mirrored shelves, glassware and bottles. Flanking the bar are these gorgeous blackened steel bar stools in clashing fabrics from one of our favourite textile designers Charlotte Jade including her gorgeous hand illustrated Botanical palm and Animal Print styles. The botanic theme is underlined with acres of lush planting within the space, suspended from ceilings and with clusters of greenery used to zone the space during these times of Covid, creating private, sheltered corners for people to eat and drink in a relaxed way.

Welcome to Miami

Our design scheme is centred on a Miami palette of clashing pinks, corals, pale mints, teal greens and dusky blues, keeping things playful. Swivel seats for golden age style, pared down with 70s style cantilever dining chairs in a mix of raw cane and upholstered in tactile fabrics. For fabrics we opted for a mix of patterned and plain velvets, softly textured wools and leathers. Creating oversized Deco-fabulous booth-banquettes in boldly clashing coral and pink, to create a statement dining spot beneath fabulously oversized pop-art pieces, specially commissioned for the venue by the Clients. The PDR has an Aussie supermarket made out of felt by Lucy Sparrow.

We chose dining tables in a mix of rounds and squares, topped with a range of finishes for an eclectic feel — including cocktail-cool smoke-tinted glass, deep emerald green, carrara white and dusky brown marble. Edge-banded with antique brass for a touch of glamour.

A beer tank and a bakery

At the end of the cocktail bar is a dedicated beer bar. Presided over by two dramatic built-in pressurised Duotanks, serving fresh, perfectly cool, full of flavour beer. The walls behind the beer tanks have been distressed with a special decorative effect shot through with metallic gold touches, hand finished by Tabby Riley, who was commissioned to add some of the special touches to Scarlett Green.

Like all of the Daisy venues, Bondi Green is an all-day affair, serving up amazing Aussie coffee, breakfast, brunch, dinner and zinging cocktails. But what sets this new venue apart, is the inclusion of a working bakery, specialist Tank Beer station and artisan Pizza oven. The other unique feature is the enviably large, outdoor-heated waterside terrace, on the banks of the canal, with the water lapping within feet of your table. With fully retractable glazed doors, we worked with the clients to design the outdoor space with an inside-outside drinks and dining vibe, to make it a new destination for al fresco food, drink and socially-distanced hook ups.