Written by 
Japanese studio Kengo Kuma and Associates has refurbished the interiors of the Endo at the Rotunda sushi restaurant at the former BBC Television Centre in London.
Kengo Kuma and Associates (KKAA), which designed the original space, made a number of significant changes to the omakase restaurant, which is located in the rooftop pavilion on the eighth floor of the circular glass building.
“This projects was an unusual one,” KKAA architect Javier Villar Ruiz told Dezeen.
“It consisted on the renovation of a space that we at KKAA had originally designed. The original counter that once structured the whole space, now was going to be reduced in order to create a new lounge space.”
To keep the “spirit of the original counter” in the new lounge space, KKAA designed a large cedar wood bench with an undulating, stacked shape that gives the room an organic feel.
“We avoided the simple solution of just populating the new space with lounge chairs and tables and decorative elements; and instead we gathered the seatings into one big wooden bench that recovers the presence power of the counter,” Ruiz explained.
“Indeed, we designed this bench as the result of stacking sections of wood exactly to the ones in the counter, creating a dialogue between both bench and counter,” he added.
By adding more wood, the studio also aimed to soften the space, which has floor-to-ceiling windows.
It also added a wavy installation made of polyester fabric, designed to look like paper, which is suspended from the ceiling and adds an ethereal feel to Endo at the Rotunda.
“Sushi restaurants in Japan are usually small, cozy, intimate, enclosed spaces,” Ruiz said. “For Endo we had to transform a rooftop pavilion mainly made out of glass and metal showcasing impacting panoramic views of London.”
“The undulating forms of the ceiling, the counter and the bench have the aim to soften the geometries of the existing architecture, creating a sense of comfort,” he continued.
KKAA chose to work with wood as it’s the traditional material used for sushi bars.
“Because of the dialogue between the new lounge bench and the sushi counter, using wood was the natural choice,” Ruiz said.
“Genuine Japanese sushi experience is always related to the presence of wood, specially in the counter, not only because its traditional feel, but because of the sensorial qualities that it brings to the whole experience: the natural warmth of its touch and the subtle nuances of its scent.”
The restaurant, which seats 10 people, serves an 18-course edomae sushi menu that combines British produce with Cornish and Spanish seafood.
Other recent Kengo Kuma and Associates projects include a wooden Christmas tree that will eventually be turned into furniture and a Chinese clay museum cloaked in handmade tiles.
The photography is by Benjamin McMahon.
Project credits:
KKAA team: Javier Villar Ruiz, Jaime Fernandez Calvache and Marian Dominguez Duran