Bar Botanique, Amsterdam, Netherlands

Venues don’t come much lusher than Bar Botanqiue, a new bar and diner in Amsterdam East. Rising from the ashes of long running neighbourhood café De Ponteneur, Amsterdam practice Studio Modijefsky designed a visually rich interior that capitalises the site’s corner frontage, generous windows and abundance of natural light. 

As the name suggests, plant life is a defining feature of the space. Palm trees, ferns philodendron and monsteras fill windows, line walls and hang from ceilings. As late afternoon light shines through the space, silhouettes of the foliage are beamed onto the vivid pastel green and smokey pink walls, bringing the space to life in exotic fashion. 

Geometrical forms also contribute to the design’s distinct tropical nature. Circular and semi circular mirrors complement the steel framed archways of the custom built bar and service area, while hanging planters and even the venue’s signage and identity all boast circular forms that exude an art-deco allure. 

With its doors open daily from 9am to 1am until 3am weekends, and a menu that shifts from light café fare by day to bistro-stlye mains and pizza by night, the venue looks set to continue the location’s tradition as a social fixture of the neighbourhood.