A stylish new all-day café-bar has opened in a restored 18th-century sail loft on Bristol’s historic harbourside.
Located between the Arnolfini and the YHA, close to Pero’s Bridge, The Architect is the brainchild of Design West, a registered charity previously known as The Architecture Centre.
Opening today (August 10), The Architect will serve coffee, cakes and light bites in the morning, with a lunch menu featuring baguettes and salads.
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In the evenings, it will have more of relaxed wine bar vibe with cheese and charcuterie boards to accompany a selection of fine wines.
Rosie Morgan of The Bristol Cheesemonger at Cargo, Wapping Wharf, will stock the evening cheeseboard, and award-winning Wiltshire wine merchants Yapp Brothers will supply the wines.
The new space has been designed in collaboration with film and television designer Gemma Randall, who is best known for her work on His Dark Materials (BBC) and War of the Worlds (Netflix), and project architect Shankari Raj, the Head of Education at Design West.
The renovation project has restored and revealed many of the building’s original features including the charred timber beams.
The project was completed thanks to a successful crowdfunder, and the construction phase employed local makers, metal-workers, upholsterers and craftspeople as well as benefitting from the support of local firms.
Design West Director Anna Rutherford said: “In collaboration with some of the best designers and firms in the city we’ve created a stylish new café-bar, a place for conversation and creativity to flow, and a step forward in creating a more open and resilient charity.
“For 25 years, we’ve brought people together to inspire and involve people in the design of our city. Now we’re opening our doors as we transform our own historic home on the harbour into a new venue for design and placemaking.”
The Architect’s manager, Alex Martinelli, said: “We’re passionate about good, simple food and blending the best local produce with classic European fare.”
The new venue opened at 11am today (August 10).
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