San Francisco
,
CA USA
China Live
Market Hall, Restaurant & Bar
,
San Francisco
,
CA USA
Market Hall, Restaurant & Bar
,
About
The brain child of chef George Chen, China Live is a retail marketplace based in San Francisco, CA, offering a variety of modern, authentic Chinese experiences in one venue.
After a research trip to Shanghai, the AvroKO team set to work creating vibrant, dynamic and interactive spaces that continue Chef Chen’s mission to bring fine Chinese food to the forefront of worldwide culinary recognition. We strove to de-mystify Chinatown’s many facets and ingredients while blending the aesthetics of contemporary China with western implementation. The marketplace connects retail, food service, culinary discovery and education featuring individual vendor and demo stations, each focusing on a specialty ingredient or cooking technique. The space features open seating with wooden communal tables and stools, hand-carved and hand-printed banners and signage informed by traditional Chinese wood blocking, a variety of materials including native blue Shanghai brick that is found throughout the city today, as well as tile, canvas and blackened steel elements.The second floor is home to a variety of “secret” experiences including hidden entrances and artwork as well as the exclusive tasting-menu-only restaurant Eight Tables, Gold Mountain Lounge, and the award-winning Cold Drinks Bar.
TIME magazine
World's Greatest Places
LOCATION
San Francisco
,
CA USA
Size
22,500 ft² / 2,090 m²
CaTEGORY
Food Halls
Client
George Chen
Keys
Open Gallery
Shanghai Grit
The space is a balanced collision of raw, industrial materials and finely tuned details and polish. Elements throughout the café, market and retail are modern interpretations of many traditional and indigenous Chinese materials, originally pulling the palette from what the designers discovered on their trip to Shanghai.
The space is decked out with chunky distressed wood community tables, obsessive use of tile patterns, blue Shanghai brick, unfinished slate panels, and custom hand carved and wood block printed graphic and signage on delicate linens hang throughout the space. The café tile mural is an homage and reinterpretation of the Chinoiserie artistic style. Also hidden within China Live is an intimate event space called Gold Mountain Lounge. Accessible via several discreet passages, it represents the secretive network of hidden gambling dens of Chinatowns across America.
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Immersive Retail
In an attempt to support the restaurant menu and educate diners, this space offers guests an in depth look and breakdown of the many subtleties that go into Chinese cuisine. Custom sinks, counters and tables display products and ingredients, as well as showcasing authentic and contemporary craftsmanship from China.
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Open Gallery
Cold Drinks
This hideaway bar was inspired by the idea of a Chinese dystopian future with a touch of 1970s deco-glam. In addition to 1970s lounge-style furniture including materials like lucite, acrylic, brass, dark leathers and tufting, the center of the ceiling was opened to expose the pipes and grid work, custom-textured tiles were placed on three walls, and a digital art installation was installed to give shape to the space’s dystopian landscape. Cold Drinks Bar serves Scotch-centric cocktails and is one of the top bars in San Francisco.
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Discover More
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Awards & Accolades
World's 50 Best Discovery Series
World's 50 Best Restaurants
Most Exciting Restaurant Openings
Food & Wine
San Francisco's Most Important Bar Openings
Zagat
Other Eating & Drinking Places finalist
James Beard Restaurant Design Awards
Best Bar finalist: Cold Drinks Bar
Surface Travel Awards
World's Greatest Places
TIME Magazine
Stone-Cold Stunner
Eater Awards
"Cool...almost painfully photogenic."
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