Juku’s footprint on a quiet street in Chinatown may be infamously recognisable at first glance (it was previously occupied by Le Baron), but that’s where all preconceptions end.
Inside, the multi-level Japanese restaurant, which offers izakaya, omakase and a forthcoming whisky and karaage lounge in the basement, has been transformed by architect Sebastian Quinn into an experimental, abstract space that compliments the array of contemporary artworks inside that make nod to owner and gallerist Max Levai.
Guests are first led into a long, stainless steel entryway, simply punctuated with an angular maître’d stand and overhead fluorescent lights. One step further in leads to the recessed dining room and bar, which quirkily combines grey plaster walls, rich wood paneling, crimson coloured banquettes and shiny, black lacquer-like surfaces. One wooden wall functions as a louver, concealing the kitchen as well as the building’s support structures.
Upstairs, an intimate sushi bar in mint tones allows chef Kazuo Yoshida and his team to truly show off their culinary prowess. Both levels are adorned with specially commissioned art from contemporary stars such as Jonah Friedman, Justin Lowe and Roe Etheridge. It’s this marriage of art and design, which is similarly echoed on the culinary front, that solidifies Juku’s renewed identity.
INFORMATION
ADDRESS
32 Mulberry Street
-
Photo book explores the messy, magical mundanity of new motherhood‘Sorry I Gave Birth I Disappeared But Now I’m Back’ by photographer Andi Galdi Vinko explores new motherhood in all its messy, beautiful reality
-
Rimowa violin case with Gewa strikes the right note
This new Rimowa violin case created in collaboration with Gewa is made of hard-wearing grooved aluminium
-
Nordic Knots opens Stockholm showroom in a former cinema
New Nordic Knots Stockholm showroom makes the most of the dramatic interiors of the early-20th-century Eriksbergsteatern
-
Culver City is a vibrant California destination with art and design must-sees aplenty
Culver City is fast becoming one of California’s most vibrant and creative neighbourhoods, with a swanky Downtown, an Arts District and design-forward restaurants
-
The Mercer hotel library by Dashwood Books is an analogue delight
The Mercer hotel in New York is embracing analogue pleasures, including a library curated by Dashwood Books
-
Vladislav Doronin on Aman New York, and the brand’s future
Aman New York opens in Manhattan, offering hospitality and branded apartments designed by architecture studio Denniston. Owner Vladislav Doronin talks about his ‘hardest and most expensive project’ yet, Aman’s new urban roll-out, and how he’s diversifying the world’s most coveted hotel brand
-
Villa One at the One & Only Palmilla — Los Cabos, Mexico
-
Frank Gehry and Tara Bernerd’s Conrad Los Angeles hotel opens it doors
The Conrad Los Angeles hotel is now open, occupying a sculptural building by Frank Gehry with interiors by Tara Bernerd
-
Alsace LA hotel interiors by Home Studios encapsulate SoCal energy
Alsace LA hotel, in Los Angeles’ West Adams, features interiors and furniture designs by Home Studios, inspired by the Bauhaus and Mediterranean architecture
-
Chicago's The Robey is an artfully designed offering by Grupo Habita
Mexico-based Grupo Habita's The Robey, a buzzing hotel in Chicago's Wicker Park neighbourhood is all the rage
-
Piaule opens as a new minimalist escape in the Catskills
Boutique homeware label Piaule has opened a Catskills hotel featuring 24 minimal wooden cabins, an all-day dining restaurant, and a spa, set on an immersive nature reserve
