A dimly lit new restaurant in London's Soho neighborhood pays homage to the area's historic role in the sex trade. Designed to resemble an apartment, the subterranean space of the Old Tom & English restaurant has a mix of rounded tables and gray sofas, a red carpet, a marble fireplace, and plenty of private nooks. There are four different rooms "named after famous prostitutes and madames," the English interior and product designer Lee Broom told Dezeen. "When you come in it's like going to a friend's house for a cocktail or dinner party." Or, perhaps, the HQ of an upscale escort service.
One of the restaurant's most interesting features is a crystal bulb that lights up to tell diners their drinks are ready to be collected ... from a hidden trapdoor that connects to the bar. Elsewhere, there's an oak-paneled bar with a marble counter, retro light fixtures, and midcentury bar carts made from walnut. "It's really intimate, then toward the end of the evening it starts to get a bit more raucous," Broom told Dezeen.
Photo by Luke Hayes courtesy of Old Tom & English restaurant
· Old Tom & English restaurant [Official site]
· Lee Broom pairs oak and marble for prostitution-themed London restaurant [Dezeen]
· All Eating Pretty posts [Curbed National]