Tomo is a new Seattle restaurant that offers the cuisine typically associated with fine dining – think micro-seasonal, locally sourced dishes – in the congenial atmosphere of a neighbourhood hangout.
The cusine
The restaurant, which already has a thousand-plus waiting list, features a consistently changing five-course set menu that places a premium on Pacific Northwest ingredients and is heavily influenced by Japanese techniques and flavours.
Dishes include delectable Chawanmushi savoury egg with tropea onion; pork collar with kohlrabi cabbage and sea lettuce; and albacore with sansho pepper and caramelised onion. It’s food that is experimental without being polarising, ideal for those who enjoy the experience of small-plate dining but without the shirt tails.
The interiors
That relaxed attitude is reflected in Tomo’s interiors, which have been designed by Seattle and Amsterdam-based studio Graypants.
The space, like the food it serves, takes Northwestern materials and filters them through a Japanese sensibility. Wood felled in Washington forests fills the space, from the walls to the tables and the chairs, with much of it stained a deep ebony in homage to the Japanese practice of shou sugi ban (where the surface of wood is charred).
Textures are combined, with one wall of scale-like shingles running parallel to a wall of vertical ash slats. The lighting is subtle and intimate, integrated into the architectural elements such as the wall panels, the bench seating, and the bar shelves.
‘I love how the space expands and contracts,’ says Brady Williams, Tomo’s founder and former executive chef of Seattle’s landmark 1950s restaurant Canlis. ‘There are both intimate zones and areas for guests to spread out and let loose.’
‘The restaurant's interior not only helps draw attention to and set the stage for the food, but creates a real warm, comfort for guests – it's a space you want to spend an evening in. And that was definitely our goal as a restaurant, to be a destination, to make people want to stay.’
Whether its the food, the atmosphere, or both that make you want to stay, Tomo is almost certain to please. Is worth sticking around for the lighting alone, which, as Williams puts it, is ‘extremely flattering – everyone looks great in here’.
INFORMATION
-
The 2024 Ivor Novello nominations for songwriting have been revealed77 British and Irish songwriters and composers make up this year's nominees, announced tonight at London's Groucho Club
-
Why Bollinger’s La Grande Année 2015 champagne is worth celebratingChampagne Bollinger unveils La Grande Année 2015 and La Grande Année Rosé 2015, two outstanding cuvées from an exceptional year in wine-making
-
Lexus installation explores time at Milan Design Week 2024Lexus brought designer Hideki Yoshimoto’s ‘Beyond the Horizon’ to Milan’s Art Point, part of its ongoing series of collaborations with Fuorisalone
-
Laila Gohar debuts bar accessories inspired by her travelsChef and designer Laila Gohar unveils a new range of bar accessories and cocktails with her signature surrealist flair
-
The Commerce Inn is a West Village Tavern inspired by the ShakersWe explore the simple pleasures of The Commerce Inn, Rita Sodi and Jody Williams’ perfectly crafted, Shaker-inspired West Village tavern
-
Happy Independence Day, USA! Wallpaper* launches a month-long celebration of creative AmericaThis 4 July we toast the cream of creative USA with our very own cherry soda float. See more in August 2023 Wallpaper*, on sale 6 July, and all month on Wallpaper.com
-
Lavender and Truffles: plant-based ice cream with Asian-inspired flavoursFashion industry veteran Alicia Liu launches an ice cream brand like no other, with passion and grit as the main ingredients
-
In Washington, DC, Yayoi Kusama and Veuve Clicquot are in full bloomYayoi Kusama and Veuve Clicquot continue their long and fruitful collaboration with a series of art events in Washington, DC, headlined by the artist’s major show, ‘One With Eternity’ at the Hirshhorn
-
New York exhibition celebrates the history of African American cuisine‘African/American: Making the Nation’s Table’ is a new exhibition in New York City that examines the traditions and innovations of African American cooking
-
Mickalene Thomas’ recipe for duck with chimichurriTry Mickalene Thomas’ take on a much-cherished recipe for duck with chimichurri. As featured in our monthly Artist’s Palate series, a Wallpaper* homage to our favourite contemporary art
-
Kelly Wearstler designs California-style gingerbread house for Flamingo EstateIn collaboration with LA's Flamingo Estate, Kelly Wearstler designs a limited-edition gingerbread house in her signature California Modernist style
