Designed in 2008 while working at The Map Office, collaborating with Potion Design.
The St. Regis Hotel is renowned for personal service and attention to detail. Potion created a custom interactive bar and tasting table that allows the Master Sommelier to achieve a new level of service and personalization in their restaurant Adour by Alain Ducasse.
Cast in bronze with a goat skin surface, the sculpted bar feels more like Paris in the twenties than present-day New York. Extending the aesthetic established by David Rockwell, Potion collaborated with the Map Office to design a rich interactive experience that feels lovingly crafted and as far away from technology as possible.
When one encounters the table, its surface glows with the deep red hue of wine when lit from below. Upon closer inspection, guests discover that the pattern radiating out from the center of the bar is subtly moving-the first indication that the bar is not simply a bar. Touching a white bottle icon activates the interactive wine list, a digital showcase of Adour’s extensive collection. Upon making a selection, a gently spinning rosette floats down in front of the guest. Notes about a wine’s terroir, origin, and producer gradually unfold like the petals of a flower. Tasting notes appear on another of the rosette’s five petals. Those sitting at the bar may collect and compare a flight of wines, each represented by its own rosette, before making a decision of which bottle to enjoy. To keep the experience at Adour fresh, Potion created a custom content management system, allowing the wine director to update the interactive bar on a daily basis, ensuring that every day at Adour is a special occasion.
Eddie Opara - Creative Direction, The Map Office
Jared Schiffman - Director of Technology, Potion Design
Jared Schiffman - Director of Technology, Potion Design
