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This Art-Deco American Brasserie For The Foot Of YVRs Old Sun Tower

Silver-brasserie-by-CORE-Washington-DC

Restaurant Porn is a regular column of daydreams presented as a means to introduce Vancouver diners and designers to concepts, looks, and fully-formed ideas that they might draw an inkling of inspiration from. We do our best to pair the foreign rooms with local addresses so as to let everyone in on the daydream.

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(via) We love the look of Silver, a new 1920’s-inspired Art Deco brasserie in Bethesda, MD. Designed by Washington, DC-based architecture/design firm CORE, the 4,500 sqft space is very close to the look we’d want for the kind of establishment we’d love to see operating at the foot of Vancouver’s iconic Sun Tower in Crosstown. The ground floor currently houses a fitness studio and an event space, but we dare to dream. (For context, we’ve included a gallery of images of the Sun Tower at the bottom of this post.)

Silver’s layout, influenced by a traditional Pullman car diner, has a central entrance, long, narrow shape, with the “counter bar” and kitchen front and center. The bar itself is a show-stopping proscenium that acts as a glowing beacon in the restaurant, creating visual impact from the street. The team chose an updated Art Deco style, which blends notions of streamlining and richness of material and detailing, merging the energy of an authentic diner with a layer of sophistication. The elegant Deco-inspired color palette combines blue, silver, cream, black and Mahogany-wood tones with punches of red. The prominent hand-glazed brick wall tile, common in 1920s-era train stations, adds character and visual texture to the dining room. Custom large-scale brasserie lighting and Chrysler Building-inspired sconces on soaring columns, give the space a warm glow and ambiance for all day parts. This dramatic lighting draws the eye of street-goers and adds to the iconic, alluring design of Silver’s prominent storefront.

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  • Framing of the World Tower, circa 1911
    Framing of the World Tower, circa 1911
  • How the Sun Tower fits in Vancouver's skyline (from Chinatown)
    How the Sun Tower fits in Vancouver's skyline (from Chinatown)
  • Inside the cupola looking east
    Inside the cupola looking east
  • Looking through the eastern oculus
    Looking through the eastern oculus
  • The ceiling of the cupola
    The ceiling of the cupola
  • The newly renovated ground floor event space
    The newly renovated ground floor event space
  • The view from the western end of the Dunsmuir Viaduct
    The view from the western end of the Dunsmuir Viaduct
  • In the midst of renovation one the 15th floor (lucky tenants, whoever they might be)
    In the midst of renovation one the 15th floor (lucky tenants, whoever they might be)
  • Heading up into the cupola from the dome
    Heading up into the cupola from the dome
  • Looking up from West Pender and Beatty St.
    Looking up from West Pender and Beatty St.
  • The winding staircase to the dome from the 17th floor
    The winding staircase to the dome from the 17th floor
  • Andrew framing up an oculus inside the dome
    Andrew framing up an oculus inside the dome
  • Inside the dome (with imaginary treasure and frescos)
    Inside the dome (with imaginary treasure and frescos)
  • The Sun Tower
    The Sun Tower
  • The newly renovated ground floor event space
    The newly renovated ground floor event space
  • Inside the 15th floor renovation
    Inside the 15th floor renovation
  • Sun Tower with Neon Sign, 1961 (note the dome is brick in colour)
    Sun Tower with Neon Sign, 1961 (note the dome is brick in colour)
  • Inside the 15th floor renovation
    Inside the 15th floor renovation
  • The newly renovated ground floor event space
    The newly renovated ground floor event space
  • View of Pender Street east of Cambie Street
    View of Pender Street east of Cambie Street
  • View southwest from the 15th floor
    View southwest from the 15th floor
  • Inside the cupola atop the dome
    Inside the cupola atop the dome
  • Peekaboo from the Dunsmuir Viaduct
    Peekaboo from the Dunsmuir Viaduct
  • The Sun Tower
    The Sun Tower
  • Looking west from the cupola atop the dome
    Looking west from the cupola atop the dome
  • Moody view
    Moody view
  • Looking north from the dome's cupola
    Looking north from the dome's cupola
  • Inside the 15th floor renovation
    Inside the 15th floor renovation
  • Looking east to Gastown and Railtown
    Looking east to Gastown and Railtown
  • Exterior detailing
    Exterior detailing
  • Steel framed platform that affords views through oculi and a ladder up to the cupola
    Steel framed platform that affords views through oculi and a ladder up to the cupola
  • Oculus looking west
    Oculus looking west
  • Oculus looking west
    Oculus looking west
  • Elevator tech's chair (presumably)
    Elevator tech's chair (presumably)
  • Radiators on the 15th floor
    Radiators on the 15th floor
  • 15th floor view
    15th floor view
  • Save On Meats etc, from the cupola
    Save On Meats etc, from the cupola
  • 15th floor renovation
    15th floor renovation
  • 15th floor renovation
    15th floor renovation
  • The new event space on the ground floor
    The new event space on the ground floor
  • The Human Fly scaling the World Tower in 1918
    The Human Fly scaling the World Tower in 1918

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