Landing gracefully on Swan Street, on Richmond’s burgeoning drinks strip, is The Ugly Duckling, a new cocktail bar that appeals to the polished urban set. Hatched by owner David Abela – managing director of branding and PR powerhouse 3 Degrees Marketing – and executed by local interior design studio Hecker Guthrie, two rooms with a distinctly different ambience connect seamlessly through the smart migration of furnishings and colour palettes.
The stark, compact entrance, anchored by a marbled stone bar, awakens into a light-filled atrium with potted Ginko trees that soar towards a skylight. Here patrons can linger over cocktails such as The Soursnap, a refreshing medley of spirits with rose syrup, ginger, egg white, sugar snap peas and a dash of lime, or snack on antipasto-style plates.
Neutral hues, from whitewashed timber underfoot to the custom-made American oak tables, dominate the lofty rear space, but most genius are the mirror panels spanning a wall shelf; their painted borders, crudely hand-dipped in the entry’s signature ink-blue, tether them to the bar’s solid foundations without diminishing their ethereal qualities.
INFORMATION
ADDRESS
238 Swan Street
-
Wallpaper* Architects’ Directory 2024: meet the practicesIn the Wallpaper* Architects Directory 2024, our latest guide to exciting, emerging practices from around the world, 20 young studios show off their projects and passion
-
St. Vincent on designing her Klaus Nomi-inspired guitar lineSt. Vincent is a Wallpaper* guest editor for 2024. Here, she unpacks her long-standing relationship with the guitar. It started with wearing one in front of a mirror. Who knows how it ends. But somewhere in the middle, there is fun and freedom and a well-tailored instrument
-
Artist Jonathan Baldock plays hide and seek with the windows of Hermès' London flagshipA series of fantastical, brightly coloured hedges, dotted with peepholes, transform Hermès' New Bond Street store, offering an interactive experience for the passerby
-
Tap into local creativity at The StandardX, MelbourneThe StandardX, Melbourne is the first hotel in The Standard Group's new breed of ‘younger and rebellious’ properties
-
Basq House is the eclectic-cool stay to know in Byron BayDesigned by StudioFAB and Léo Terrando, Basq House reverberates with the Australian town’s laid-back beach culture and artistic spirit
-
Discover Beau Sydney, an intimate two-part restaurant enlivening the city’s lanewaysBeau Sydney dishes up contemporary Australian cuisine, from baked goods to regional wines, amid elegant interiors by Smart Design Studio
-
Inside The Ghan train across Australia, new carriage interiors elevate a classic tripThe Ghan’s new carriage interiors designed by Woods Bagot reimagine modern rail travel for this epic trip between Darwin and Adelaide
-
Sydney’s The Darling shows off its playful and sophisticated suitesThe Darling in Sydney unveils its recently renovated suites by Fender Katsalidis, paying homage to the surrounding cityscape
-
St Ali & The Queen elevates Melbourne’s coffee culture with modern brews and brutalismSt Ali & The Queen is a Fiona Lynch Office-designed café and cocktail bar in Melbourne’s revitalised Queen Victoria Market
-
Kangaroo Island’s Southern Ocean Lodge returns to full splendourKangaroo Island’s Southern Ocean Lodge reopens in one of Australia’s wildest and most enchanting remote corners, following the devastating 2019 bushfires
-
Six luxury lodges to discover in Western AustraliaFrom desert camps to beach retreats, explore luxury lodges to rest and recharge in the sun-kissed region
