LEVY Architects Teams Up with Chef Owners of Barley Swine and Bufalina to Offer Up the Newest Dining as Destination on North Central Austin’s Burnet Road
Austin, Texas (PRWEB) October 09, 2015 -- Today LEVY Architects and chef owners, Bryce Gilmore of Barley Swine and Steven Dilley of Bufalina announced the opening of North Austin’s own Barley Swine and Bufalina Due restaurants in the renovated center at 6555 Burnet Road in North Central Austin. Barley Swine and Bufalina Due will anchor the renovated center owned by Endeavor Realty. These two popular Austin restaurants were an integral part of creating South Austin’s popularity, locally and nationally, as a dining destination hot spot. With the opening in North Burnet location, the two are hoping to create similar buzz for this up-and-coming area. Bufalina Due and Barley Swine hope to announce official opening dates by end of year.
The transformation of an old, abandoned generic strip center into a culturally relevant destination provided the backdrop for the design challenge for the LEVY team. According to LEVY Architects President Stephen V. Levy, AIA, “We created the quintessential, minimalist restaurant to let the experience of diners remain focused on the food. With the use of natural and local materials such as reclaimed wood, copper and a locally crafted, old school masonry fireplace, Barley Swine and Bufalina Due have an authentic, local and timeless feel.”
Neither Barley Swine nor Bufalina are noted for their architectural branding and design at either of their first locations in South Austin. What can diners expect to experience at the new location? “What makes this project so unique and so special is the absolute synergy we had with the chef owners for both restaurants,” said architect, James Cornetet, AIA, LEVY Architects. “The trend has been for architects to do the design and then hand off the interior to interior design specialists. But this often causes a disruption, ultimately in the customer’s experience and flow of a space.”
With the LEVY Architects team controlling every element of the space, the real synergy between architect and chef could be leveraged so the customer dining experience is elevated by the surroundings and not distracted by design for design’s sake.
“I wanted to stay true to my original vision of local, farm to table family style dining, but at the same time the concept needed to evolve, to stay relevant and fresh,” explained Bryce Gilmore, chef and owner of Barley Swine. “I think we accomplished that with rich materiality that elevates the experience. No single design element screams for attention; it feels rich in experience but overall clean, simple. It’s actually much more complicated to create the right level of minimalism that still feels right for the customer. The LEVY team understood this from the start and worked with me every step of the way to ensure that my vision translated into the physical space.”
Bufalina chef, owner Steven Dilley may be the ultimate purist when it comes to focusing on the craft of cooking. He aims to make it seem deceptively simple, but at the same time, the food is like no other of its kind. The design reflects this imperative of absolute focus on the food. “The difficulty with minimalism, in both design and in food, is the need for flawless execution of all elements,” stated Steven Dilley, chef and owner of Bufalina. “As in the perfect pizza, nothing in the design can be fussy or intrusive that distracts from the food. The LEVY team accomplished this with a mastery of control over all elements when they designed our space.”
About LEVY Architects, PLLC
Levy Architects PLLC is an Austin based full service architecture firm with expertise in master planning, land planning, and sustainable design for Commercial, Corporate, Hospitality, Restaurant, Retail, Multi-Family, Residential + Ranch Homes. Marrying the aesthetic with the pragmatic nature of all architecture projects, LEVY Architects is noted for exceeding design expectations while also keeping the client’s bottom line in check. LEVY clients also enjoy the best ratio of talented and experienced architects to project ratio in the industry. For more information, visit http://www.levyarchitects.com.
About Barley Swine
Barley Swine is a notable, award-winning South Austin original serving farm to table meals since 2010. It is one of two restaurants founded by nationally acclaimed Chef Bryce Gilmore. What began as a food truck has grown into two brick-and-mortar restaurants, Barley Swine and Odd Duck. Locally sourced ingredients are key in the creation of the fresh and rustic menu items that are paired with local craft beers. For more information, visit http://www.barleyswine.com.
About Bufalina
Bufalina is a neighborhood pizzeria located in central east Austin that has been serving handcrafted Neapolitan style pies and wine since 2013. Chef and owner Steven Dilley pays special attention to the delicate details of perfecting a bubbly and delectable pizza, while channeling his concept of using simple and real ingredients. Dilley's worldly and lengthy experience in pizza-making is evident in his authentic and artisanal menu items. For more information, visit http://www.bufalinapizza.com.
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Kimberly Strenk, Five Two SQ Integrated PR, Inc., http://www.fivetwosq.com, +1 (415) 515-9414, [email protected]
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