Clockwise from opposite: The two-story wine tower dominates the atrium spanning the site’s second and third floors, where Cooper’s Hawk’s two main dining rooms are located. Retail, a tasting bar, and the wine tower occupy the second level, where herringbone flooring is created with ceramic tile. The host station behind the main bar is backed by a wood-plank feature wall. The existing facade with historic signage was updated by adding outdoor patio seating on the second level.
Completed 2019 23,687 square feet
A longstanding Aria client, Cooper’s Hawk has numerous restaurants nationwide. Conceptually and physically, winemaking takes center stage at this, its flagship location. And what a stage it gets in the historic Esquire Theater building located in the heart of Chicago’s Gold Coast. Decidedly a hybrid, the project solves a densely interwoven program addressing dining, renovation of a storied interior, and a tribute to all aspects of viniculture. These elements play out over the building’s three levels, each with a different functionality. On the ground floor, just inside the entry, a massive display of wines with international provenance and a custom art installation fashioned from 1,600 wine corks set the tone for what’s to come. On the second level, a retail section plus the beloved restaurant component come into play. Brass chandeliers overlook a tasting bar backed by the interior’s pièce de résistance: a soaring two-story wine tower lit by cascading fixtures fashioned as stylized barrels. The top level provides full-scale glamour, with a custom bubbly chandelier that sparkles above a U-shape bar. “We played with the concept of raw materials like steel and plaster
Aria Group Architects
COOPER’S HAWK WINERY & RESTAURANT, CHICAGO
juxtaposed against exotic woods and ornate iron workings,” project designer Elizabeth Kozlik says. “It was the dichotomy that allowed us to create an experience that honored the history of the Esquire Theater in a modern way.” The 100-person, Chicago-based full-service architecture and design firm got it right, down to the last drop. PROJECT TEAM JOE VAJDA; DAN BERNATEK; VICTOR BAEZ, JR.; ANA HERNANDEZ; ELIZABETH KOZLIK; STACEY BOUWMAN; EVELINA URBONAITE KEY CONSULTANTS BTR ENGINEERING; TRIMARK SS KEMP; INTERNATIONAL CONTRACTORS INC.; PREMIER ARCHITECTURAL PRODUCTS; ARCHISTORIC PRODUCTS; PAUL PUNKE; VISUAL IMPACT MEDIA PHOTOGRAPHY EMILIA CZADER
ariainc.com; @ariagrouparchitects 154 INTERIOR DESIGN