3 3 The wood on the ground floor bar top runs horizontally, a subtle reference to the building’s past as a bowling alley. Rough-hewn wood boxes behind the bar are arranged in a textural display that’s a signature design feature of Matchbox restaurants. 34 boutiquedesign.com JULY + AUGUST 2013 “We all walked into the building and said, ‘This is the place,’” ShoveBrown recalls. “We could see instantly how dramatic it could be.” Early in the project, the designers discovered the building’s floor was not level with the street. They decided to turn that anomaly into a plus by dropping the floor 8 inches, to bring it to street level, and by removing a steel girder. That allowed them to transform what had been a two-story space into a three-level restaurant. Tracz says that not only allowed for more seating (300 inside, 50 outside), “It also allows people to experience the restaurant a different way every time they go.” The additional height made room for two kitchens—a main one on the first floor and a smaller one for prep and storage on the second floor. It also created an opportunity for elevated “matchbox” seating—two six-top wooden booths for seeing and being seen—based on a concept introduced in an earlier Matchbox locale. The two booths on the mezza-http://www.boutiquedesign.com