HOW TO
HOW TO: FOOD TRENDS
PUSHING THE LIMITS The Club Room proves why size doesn’t matter.
All Photos: D’Amico & Partners; Campiello.
C
ampiello, a 21-year-old Italian restaurant in Naples, Florida, is well known for its refined eats and vast wine list. But it was the addition of a 2000-square-foot space called The Club Room at the start of 2020 that made a big splash. “The Club Room offered us the opportunity to provide a totally distinct dining/entertainment experience for our guests while creating a space for private events and additional indoor seating during the rainy season,” says Richard D’Amico, D’Amico & Partners co-owner and founding partner. “Also, Campiello is regularly sold out in season and on the weekends year-round, so the Club Room allows us to capture customers we would otherwise lose. It also fills a niche in the Naples market, in terms of it offering an elevated level of Italian cuisine—‘Alta Cucina’—and a live music element, both combining to create an otherworldly experience.”
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BY ASHLEY BRAY The Club Room’s distinct design identity not only differentiates it from the rest of Campiello, but also from the rest of the Naples market. “The overreaching design goal was to create a look that could lead guests to think that they could be in New York City, Paris, London, or Berlin,” says D’Amico. “The Club Room really does take one away.” The Club Room features a checkerpatterned floor tile in soft foam green and black in the dining room, and pink and black in the bar. The walls are finished in a combination of eggplant Venetian plaster and moss, accented by gold leaf trim and light green chalk paint, while the ceilings are composed of reclaimed barn siding. Finishing touches include oversized, amorphous silk pendants and elegant leather furnishings. A fireplace and a specially commissioned work of art highlight a lounge seating area located in the center of the room. The most interesting element of The
Club Room—especially for those in the industry—may be its 16-foot long bar with just eight stools and a total area of 190 square feet. “The size of the bar complements the size and look of the room and adds to the cozy feel of the space,” explains D’Amico. However, it took some ingenuity to create a design specifically outfitted for a bar of this size that was efficient, able to provide high-volume service in a small space, and didn’t impact service to guests.
Pro Tip When building out your setup behind the bar, bring in the staff that will actually be using it for input to test out ideas.
April/May 2020
Bar Business Magazine
23
