“Make yourself at home” is the invitation guests receive when approaching the recently-opened Abode bistro & bar, and that’s certainly how the multi-spaced interior makes you feel, with its comfortable lounge and sports bar, stylish and modern dining room and relaxed decking area, all designed to instill a sense of familiarity and comfort for both local and visiting diners alike.

Designed by the interior architecture team at Forward Thinking Design, Abode is the culmination of the two-year, multi-million dollar refurbishment of the Parkroyal Hotel in Sydney’s Darling Harbour and, with its multitude of functions throughout the day – early morning café, evening dining, late night bar - the space had to be the perfect venue for all occasions and social experiences. Celebrating the virtues of Australia, the design draws on natural, earthy tones throughout and uses Florence Broadhurst stylistic touches and cockatoo-patterned screens & ceiling panels, while the menu uses locally grown and sourced produce.

Haron Robson’s specialist lighting design team was called on to complement the interior architecture with lighting design which would make the restaurant ‘feel like home’. Each area of the large space was to feel like a different room in a familiar home, and the quick turnaround for the design and construction phases of the project certainly kept the designers on their toes.

Instead of adjusting hospitality-appropriate lighting design techniques to fit the brief, our designers flipped the idea on its head and adapted lighting design schemes developed for luxury homes to make this commercial space feel more intimate. The design expertly manages daylight and shadows, uses accent lighting to focus on everyday objects within the space and takes full advantage of intelligent lighting controls to compliment the change of use throughout the day. With hidden LEDs inside cabinet joinery, lighting through screens to cast interesting shadows, creating dramatic scenes for late-evening and accenting the space with glowing, low-hanging pendants; the lighting designers used almost every trick in their toolbox to give the space the relaxed yet intimate atmosphere which makes this space so alluring.

We hope you’ll visit soon and feel equally at home.