Hollywood: Nestled within an inner courtyard of the Sunset & Vine development in the heart of old Hollywood, the design of The Hungry Cat restaurant creates an island of calm amidst the visual cacophony of the retail mall. A voluminous mass coated in smooth lacquer glows at the corner of the pedestrian cul-de-sac like a pearl nested within an oyster. Inspired by the restaurant’s specialty, the metaphor of a smooth pearl within a rough shell inspires the shapes and textures of the interior. Curvature offsets the powerful scale of the sculpted shapes within the small space, creating a sense of movement and intimacy beneath the hovering mass.

Santa Barbara: The Hungry Cat Santa Barbara expands upon the themes of Hungry Cat Hollywood, completed in 2005 and expanded in 2007. Nestled in the corner an existing Spanish colonial building, the restaurant features an open kitchen, extensive raw bar and banquette seating to create a vibrant atmosphere within a small interior space. Recalling the contrasting textures of pearls and their rough outer shell, a sweeping soffit of stained grey mahogany envelopes the open kitchen, intersecting the curvature of a fabric-wrapped ceiling and an irridescent, arched onyx wall that culminates along the raw bar. Seen from the expansive storefront windows that line sidewalk, the copper clad banquette and tables frame the sculptural forms that hover overhead.