Lenora is open from sunrise to well beyond sunset, so it needs to function differently at different times of the day. The space is anchored around a large bar that serves as a welcome station for customers and a spot to grab to-go orders. In the morning the space operates like a coffee shop, but by moving some seating around and adjusting the basic organization of how people come and go, it becomes a casual lunch spot and, later, a neighborhood taco bar. In the evening, it transitions into a late-night bar, and the large center bar—a constant throughout the day’s transformation—becomes the focus of activity. The whole place is meant to be a sort of Swiss army knife: the menu changes throughout the day, and the space changes along with it.

The clients were involved throughout the whole design process. On day one, we met not only with the ownership group but also with their chefs and other members of their operations team. It gave us a holistic view of all the different elements we needed to consider, and we ended up with a form-following-function design that wasn’t focused on the space itself but around how things were happening in the back of house and necessary interactions with the front of house. Everything was factored in, and that’s where the space’s versatility comes from. 

The main space is basically just one large room. Since it was intended to be a hub of activity, we decided to see how many people could fit in there and worked around that to create small design moments that frame out different experiences within the big, open space. The colors and materials are a twist on what you might find at a typical Mexican eatery, but with a more refined palette of desert tones and off-pink hues. Chloe Kregling led the interior design efforts for the space, helping to curate various elements like the floor tiles that have a cementitious quality and the bar top with a unique patina on its surface that will change as it gets used. She pulled in a variety of natural materials, like wood cladding on the walls that will age with the space, which is contrasted by a striking color palette and bold wallcoverings in the fun and unique bathrooms. 

As far as client collaborations go, this was a big group, but it worked out well because we had the opportunity to test, retest, and hear everyone’s opinion. We received a ton of input through a variety of lenses, and from that we landed on a space that checks more boxes than your typical restaurant.

—Matthew Ahlberg, vice president, Barrett Made