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Precious wood, buffalo leather and a mood indigo palette bring the exoticism of Indonesia to the City of Light.
By Mary Scoviak
It’s fitting that Makassar restaurant and lounge occupy the site that once housed Paris’ Théâtre de l’empire. Housed in the Renaissance Arc de Triomphe hotel, this destination restaurant and bar interweaves references to French and Indonesian theater, film and fashion into an entertainment venue—without the high drama.
Conceived and designed by Henry Chebaane, head of Blue Sky Hospitality, in cooperation with Era Architecture (both based in London), Makassar freely mixes the aesthetics of East and West. Its name and one of its central design themes are derived from an Indonesian species of wood and the harbor from which it was exported to eager buyers among Parisian art deco designers in the 1920s. Chebaane plays up opulent Oriental overtones with bronzed buffalo leather, dark wood floors and the glint of silver shagreen curtains. Red leather walls spice up the private dining space, while the hibiscus “diva sofas” and leather stools evoke Komodo dragon skin.
The mood lightens up—literally and figuratively—with the bar’s backlit glass counter and pewter top as well as the sheen of the glass-encased wine cellar. Dinner and a show take a new meaning, thanks to a shadow theater scene projected onto the restaurant’s main wall. For those who prefer details, there’s a gallery of sketches from the worlds of fashion, theater and film offering visual diversion in the lounge.
“Working with both the owner, Altarea Property Investments, and Renaissance as the operator, we had to deliver an interiors concept where guests and locals can have a drink, snack, dine or just chill out. So both the menu and design reflect ‘French with a taste from somewhere else’ to suggest a relaxed, cosmopolitan atmosphere,” says Chebaane, whose firm also had overall creative direction on all sensory elements that connect with customers: branding and graphic identity, music playlist, uniforms, tableware, and food styling.