Bean to Bar Lounge: A Unique Taste of Design Innovation

Riki Watanabe's Award-Winning Design Transforms Chocolate Tasting into a Sensory Experience

The Bean to Bar Lounge is not just a chocolate specialty store. It's Japan's first concept shop where visitors can savor single-origin chocolate sweets from various production areas. The design's unique properties lie in its ability to bring out the unexpected charms of the materials used, creating a space that perfectly expresses the brand's ethos.

Western red cedar, a material also used in DandeLion's first store in Japan, is the primary material in the Lounge. Watanabe's innovative approach to showcasing this material involved stacking pieces in a mosaic pattern, creating a parquet-like effect. This technique, coupled with the cedar's uneven colors, results in varied expressions depending on the viewing angles.

The project, which started in October 2018 and concluded in February 2019, was a testament to Watanabe's commitment to material research and his ability to express a brand's identity through design. The challenge was to combine unlikely material use, craftsmanship, and a sense of cuteness in a small space, all while meaningfully bringing out the brand's colors.

Watanabe's design was recognized with a Silver A' Interior Space, Retail and Exhibition Design Award in 2020. This prestigious award is given to designs that demonstrate outstanding expertise, creativity, and innovation. The Bean to Bar Lounge, with its strong technical characteristics and splendid artistic skill, certainly fits this description.

The Bean to Bar Lounge is a testament to Riki Watanabe's innovative approach to design, demonstrating how a space can be transformed into a sensory experience that goes beyond its primary function. It's a place where the art of chocolate tasting and the art of design come together to create a truly unique experience.