2019, a Year in Review
What better time to open a blog than as the year draws to a close? 2019 has been a busy year for our team and we thought a moment should be taken to reflect.
After around 12 years at our Kings Langley office, we decided the time had come for a change and the search for new premises began. In October we relocated to a converted stable block on a working farm in Bedfordshire, surrounded by fields and woodland. The move coincided with the launch of our new website and branding, marking a new chapter for Interbar.
In terms of work, we kicked things off at the start of the year with the complete redesign of The Old Town Hall in Berkhamsted. Working for a local private client, our bar design team took what was previously a Carluccio’s and turned it in to Copper House; an independently run destination bar and restaurant offering a touch of luxury in the heart of the town.
In spring, following the completion of the bars at new luxury hotel Vintry & Mercer, the ever vibrant restaurant scene in Mayfair provided us a challenge in the form of the new private dining room bar for Scott’s Restaurant. The brief involved incorporating a fish tank into the front of the bar, with access in from above. We developed a pneumatic cylinder system to lift the marble bar top and hold it open at an angle, allowing daily access to the fish tank.
We followed this with a retro 50’s inspired reception and shoe exchange counter at Bloomsbury Bowling Lanes, specifically designed to match the bar we installed there in 2017. For the same regular client we also installed new bespoke bar equipment at The Raven, and are currently working on locations in Farringdon and Euston.
We moved on to the first of three new Chucs café’s in early summer, installing the bar at their South Kensington site. We worked alongside Fettle Design on all three of the bar designs, which take inspiration from traditional yachts, with polished brass rails and wood panelling.
The latter part of the summer brought about Matteo’s Bar at Annabel’s. The design was led by Martin Brudnizki Design Studio, and featured antique glass and mirror front panels and bar tops, lit by LED lighting.
Next up were the remaining Chuc’s café’s, located in Belgravia and Chelsea.
In amongst the full bar installations this year, we have also designed and installed bespoke stainless steel bar equipment for numerous clients including The Avenell Club at Arsenal FC for Delaware North, and Anheuser-Busch InBev’s new HQ.
Alongside all this our dispense sector has been booming, with steady sales of Perlick taps and brewery equipment throughout the year. We have also supplied Perlick refrigeration to superyacht company Royal Huisman in The Netherlands and Concessionaire units to accompany the bar equipment at The Avenell Club. You can find out more about Perlick here.
WeWork continue to be one of our most regular customers, with bespoke fonts going to sites across the UK, Poland and Sweden. We also supplied bespoke fonts to The Raven and The Landau Restaurant at The Langham Hotel.
As the year has gone on we’ve seen an increase in the number of residential bar design enquiries and the start of 2020 is going to involve the installation of two bars for private clients, with a few more currently in the design stage.
We’ve also been brought on board on a really exciting expansion project for one of our oldest customers, working as consultants and designers on their planned roll out in the USA. More to come on that, but we’ll leave it there for now…!
Thank you as always to our hard working, dedicated team of contractors and suppliers, without whom none of the work we do would be possible. And of course, to our clients, for allowing us to do what we do best.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you all, from all of us here at Interbar. Dogs included.
