Causeway Bay, Hong Kong
Mercury Recalls / Spinning the Platters
The common thread between music and food is their power to transport us to special moments and spaces. In a bustling city filled with fast-paced eateries, there is one restaurant-bar that will win the hearts of music lovers with an unparalleled dining experience blended with a unique fusion of sensory and culinary delights.
Stepping through the doors of Mercury Recalls, you will be instantly captivated by the warm radiance and the classic touch brought by the mesmerizing lamps and the imperfect materials. The music-themed restaurant, or vinyl-inspired to be exact, showcases an impressive “walls of sound” decorated with meticulously curated vinyl covers that adorn the space throughout. A sense of nostalgic vibe instantly transports you to a bygone era. Each corner tells a seasoned story of music history and the evolution of music styles.
Entrusted with honing the interior design of the café-bar, UU’s team explain, "For us and the restaurant's owner, Mercury Recalls is not just about serving great food. It's about crafting an immersive atmosphere where the music is as much a part of the experience as the cuisine. We want guests to feel the crackle of the needle on the record and the warmth of the analog sound."
Taking cue from cafes in Harajuku, the place combines a harmonious blend of modern and industrial elements, oozing a casual yet refined atmosphere. Textile materials and wooden accents create a natural foundation that contrasts beautifully with the pale grey tiles and concrete finishes. The open shelving units aptly showcase the owner's impressive vinyl collection, even with one single wall solely dedicated to Pink Floyd, with each album cover doubling as a work of art. The walls feature a graphic pattern subtly mirroring the grooves of vinyl records, a nod to the restaurant's music root.
Beyond the indoor dining area, the design team extends the music haven to the outdoor, with a semi-open space that blurs the line between inside and outside.
The interior is an honest reflection of the owners' passion for vinyl, with every design element carefully crafted to offer guests an immersive experience where soulful music and expertly prepared dishes warmly embrace, euphorically appealing to the senses of the diners.
Corsican Stars / A Secretive Escape
Nestled inside the Mercury Recalls restaurant, Corsican Stars is the new hidden speakeasy in town. To gain entry to this exclusive enclave, guests must first procure a special token. Once inside, they are enveloped in a surreal digital art experience crafted by local art group XCEPT that evokes a mystical world of interactive light.
Inspired by a line from the movie Cloud Atlas – "Find me beneath the Corsican stars, where we first kissed", the underlying meaning of Corsican Stars goes beyond pure romance and serves as a symbolic element to represent a beautiful collision of love, fate, and destiny. The Unite Unit design team aims to recreate the otherworldly feeling of stepping into a secret chamber hidden within an ancient tree. The design concept derives from the idea of a wormhole, where the normal rules of time and space seem to disappear. As guests make their way through the unassuming entrance, they leave all worries behind and enter a realm where the past, present, and future converge.
What appears to be an ancient Roman column gradually morphs into a towering tree; behind the bar are walls meticulously crafted to resemble the undulating skin of a tree fitted with light fixtures that cast a warm glow; the surface of the communal table has been encased in a layer of translucent resin, creating the impression of a flowing stream running through.
Another unique feature of Corsican Stars is the bathroom - stepping inside, guests are immersed in a sensory environment that evokes the feeling of being within a tree trunk. Raw and organic materials create a natural aesthetic that contrasts beautifully from the digital enchantment of the main bar area.
By seamlessly blending the ancient and the modern, the natural and the man-made, Corsican Stars emanates an atmosphere that is at once familiar and profoundly ethereal – the result is a hidden sanctuary where the ordinary becomes extraordinary.
| F&B interior design