I have been collecting magazine articles with gorgeous homes designed by Bobby McAlpine & Susan Ferrier for years.  Before I was ‘in design’, I would tear out pages of homes I liked, only years later to discover the majority were from the same architect and designer, McAlpine & Ferrier.

This was one of my early favorites from Veranda magazine:

Source

And this:

source

Having admired all these homes in magazines, I never thought about actually being able to visit one of these residences to see their work myself.  You can visit a museum to see an artist’s work or visit a public structure by someone like Frank Gehry, but for a team that does predominately residential work, the majority of us who appreciate their ‘art’ never get the opportunity to see it in person.

Now, if you are in Austin (or planning a trip?), you can actually experience a space created by Bobby McAlpine, David Baker and Susan Ferrier.  It is LaV restaurant.

The interiors are the epitome of what you would expect from this team- large, gridded windows; smoky, atmospheric interiors of wood planks, antiqued mirror, velvet and hide; floor to ceiling drapery panels and a lot of rich materials.  It is fabulous!

If you haven’t had the opportunity to visit for yourself, here are some photos from LaV’s website (nice, professional ones) and some other detailed photos which I took when I was there for brunch.  Be sure to pause and really look at all the detail in the rooms.

The first 8 photos are all sourced from here

There are several dining environments in the restaurant.  Beginning with the Wine Bar area….

Flowing into the lounge…

Then, the main dining area with signature grid windows, tufted banquettes, dramatic light fixtures and impactful drapery panels.

And finally, the private dining room.

And, a few more glimpses not found on the website:

Exterior Dining

Restaurant Entry

Waiting Bench

Wine Bar/Lounge seating

Hair on hide barstools/swivel stools, still in bright white condition!

Stainless steel bar top–

Pastry cart with signature Susan Ferrier antiqued mirror and iron lighting.  And, similar vignette at the opposite end of the bar.

And of course, it doesn’t matter how great it looks if the food isn’t any good.  No worries there.  The brioche doughnuts are so yummy!  I can’t wait to go back and try out dinner!

LaV Austin is definitely worth stopping into for drinks or dinner.  It is such a lovely space to spend time with others. 

This stop has really inspired me to get out to more ‘boutique’ restaurants to observe the design details.   Paying attention to the small details is what makes the space feel so intimate and welcoming.  I’m going to take notes on this team’s approach to creating intimacy as a personal challenge for creating a similar atmosphere for my projects, where appropriate.