London designers Child Studio have completed work on Humble Pizza, a vegan restaurant with a plant-based perspective how to create tasteful interpretations of Italian pizza classics.
The interior is inspired by the post-war 'Formica caffs' of London’s West End, where establishments featured laminate surfaces, pastel colours and were mostly owned by Italian immigrant families. The result of this classic café update is a radiant spot where wall-to-wall pink Formica cladding continues across long counter fronts and tables tops. Cherry wood framing highlighting each lush laminate panel.
Mosaic tiled flooring, neon signs and classic mid-century lighting complete the evocative design that hides behind a characterful shopfront. The façade having been stripped back to reveal original features including ornate cast iron grilles. The Humble interior is accessorised with the classic mid-century lighting pieces by European designers Poul Henningsen, Jacques Biny and Luigi Massoni.
“We have long been attracted to the cinematic quality of London’s ‘Formica cafés,” explain Chieh Huang and Alexey Kostikov of Child Studio, “the duality of Modernist design language and the playful, almost cartoonish spirit.” In Humble Pizza, the duo have taken that design language, filtered it through a lens of contemporary culture.
Pictures by Chieh Huang and Alexey Kostikov.
