Curious bar evokes a sense of wonder by design

Work had already started at the hotel W Melbourne when architecture and design firm Hachem was appointed to bring Curious to life. The below-ground bar-to-be was destined to become office space before Hachem’s intervention at the briefing stage.

“We were able to weave in the overall hotel design concept by taking advantage of this quirky area to create a quintessential secluded Melbourne bar,” explains Hachem principal Fady Hachem.

Working with an unusual pre-existing half-moon shape called for an innovative design response. Timber beams secured to the ceiling in a parametric sequence creates a cocoon-like feel, with a mirror at the end making the room appear neverending.

The elegant bar is designed as much for hotel guests as for Melbournites on a night out, with moody lighting and plush banquet seating and booths adding to the cosy vibe.

“It is one part quirky, one part avant-garde and one part chic,” says Fady.

Open Tuesday to Saturday nights, Curious Bar is part of the Collins Arch development by Woods Bagot, which is awaiting 6-star Green Star accreditation.

The bar’s main entrance on Market Street is discrete. Visitors enter through what looks like a clock shop, before heading downstairs into the bar.

The other entrance is from the hotel lobby, which offers a taste of what’s to come. In what looks to be a piece of colourful paper peeled back from the entrance is in fact formed Corian with a mural by graffiti artist Ling (Matt Thompson). A sliding bronze door opens to a tunnel leading customers ‘down a rabbit hole’ into the low-lit bar.

“It’s like something out of a fairy-tale book for grown-ups,” Fady explains. “Rabbit statues in the bar represent the theme.”

The timber-beamed ceiling delivers wow-factor the minute guests enter the space, each beam’s placement and heft enhanced with strategically placed LED lighting. WSP Specialist Lighting collaborated with Hachem on the project.

The feature bar follows the curve of the tunnel wall, with curvaceous banquette seating hugging intimate tables for after-dark rendezvous. 

Carpeted flooring contributes to comfort and acoustics as much as it does aesthetics, and follows the curved lines of the space before morphing into bluestone and herringbone oak flooring for contrast and practicality near the bar.

Tom Dixon Scoop chairs in sultry red cosy up to the blue velvet banquette seating, with cushions by local milliner Rose Hudson adding a local flourish.

In the Curious bathrooms, which are as quirky as the rest of the W Hotel’s rooms and public spaces, floor-to-ceiling custom mosaics and funky lighting ensure there’s no interruption in mood – or moments of delight.

“The narrative for Curious was embracing the art culture of Melbourne, celebrating all forms of art including street and body art,” Fady explains.

W Melbourne is located on Flinders Lane, an inner-city hotspot known for its bustling nightlife and street art. Fitting then, that Curious should embrace the local culture so wholeheartedly.

Learn more about Hachem on ArchiPro, and discover more hospitality projects.