Colette Grand Café

Colette Grand Café is a traditional, upscale French restaurant and café located at the base of Toronto's Thompson Hotel. To create a light-filled, French-inspired restaurant and café that fit within the existing modern glass building envelope, Audax focused on subdividing the 7,200 sq. ft. restaurant space into a sequence of different zones to offer guests several dining experiences, and to gradually transition them into more traditional interiors. A European colonnade was designed to run along the interior glass wall to serve as a buffer zone between the exterior and interiors. Colonnade elements were then repeated to frame the different seating areas. Varying shades of blue and yellow were used in the furniture, wallpaper, floor tiles, and fabrics to further differentiate each zone. This design solution resulted in a restaurant where each area feels intimate, yet still close to the action. Patrons, no matter where they are sitting, feel as if they got the best seat in the house. Audax's design approach also married traditional elements of a French bistro with contemporary materials, colours, and patterns.