How do you create the ideal setting for a restaurant with an experimental fusion menu? For Studio Modijefsky, the only answer was to take a similarly innovative approach to the concept and materials used in its design
The ingredients take centre stage at Gitane on Jan Pieter Heijestraat in west Amsterdam, which is the first solo restaurant of chef Angelo Kremmydas. His menu infuses classic European flavours with experimental flare, while the interiors, designed by Amsterdam’s Studio Modijefsky, offer a suitably thoughtful setting. Kremmydas spent three years at Nopi in London under Ottolenghi, where he honed his knowledge of flavour and spice and learned how to elevate everyday ingredients.
“The food served here is what makes this place stand out,” says Esther Stam, owner of all-female interior design and architecture team Studio Modijefsky. “There’s no smoke or foam – this is casual dining – but the flavours will blow your mind. We wanted to do the same with the design; in the materials, textures, colours. To use them in a new way, one that makes you look twice and surprises you when it comes to the smaller design details.”
The building dates back to the 1800s and Stam believes it has served as a leather goods store, a food mini mart and, just before this incarnation, a bar. She says: “Like a lot of places in Amsterdam, it is an older building, which comes with its challenges. But it had original features that we took as inspiration and could use in the design.” For instance, some of the original brickwork on the façade is laid in a zig-zag pattern. “We used that as a motif and blew it up to create the main design language of the bar itself, bringing something from the outside into the interior,” adds Stam.
A nod to the leather store is seen in the dark orange leather seating and leather barstools. But primarily, the studio wanted to give a sense that the interiors had a story to tell. Inside, Gitane has a laid-back Mediterranean bistro energy. The natural caramel and beige palette is welcoming: flooring is made of repurposed wooden planks, while matt finishes and surprising textures provide warmth. An orange neon sign reading BAR perches above the doorframe of the entrance inside the restaurant.
The space is divided into three areas: the ground-floor restaurant, which turns into a cocktail saloon by night, a sunken bar area, and upstairs, a cosy mezzanine level. “We needed to work with the height and make use of the beautiful light coming in,” says Stam. “We wanted to keep each zone distinct but connected. This prompts visitors to come for a drink, stay for a meal, and end up drinking cocktails until closing time.” A central column, covered in richly textured lava tiles and small accent lights, runs from floor to ceiling, uniting the building and giving it what Stam calls ‘organic flow’.
There’s a beautiful interplay between the custom-made items – such as the rounded wooden banquette seating and conical ceramic wall lamps – and the building’s original features. The lofty arched windows set with stained glass are emphasised using new red paintwork. A wooden staircase is framed in vertical cream tiles, which meander from the front of the restaurant, past the bar and on to the kitchen.
But the main event is the bar in grey, coffee and pale-pink terrazzo. Esther and her team worked with natural stone supplier Corradi & Zoon, experimenting with different colourways, types of stone, cement colour and the correct way to sprinkle grains of marble until they got it just right. “We really had to convince the makers. They’d never done anything like it before. They invited us to play around in their workshop and go with our instinct,” explains Stam.
A further playful detail was the weathered stucco effect on the walls. “I wanted it to feel like they’d been like that for a long time,” says Stam. To create the look, Studio Modijefsky worked with film-set construction firm The Set Company, experimenting to create a layered finish. “We like to explore the potential of materials and take it to the next level.” Naive art and ceramics picked up at French bazaars reinforce the feeling that this place has been here for years. Between Kremmydas’ unique way of cooking and Studio Modijefsky’s craftsmanship, Gitane is a spot where everyday elements have been magnified into something quietly magnificent.
Images by Maarten Willemstein
