Ruyi Dumpling & Wine Bar by Hecker Guthrie // Melbourne.

Ruyi Dumpling & Wine Bar opened its fabulous Hecker Guthrie designed doors earlier this month in Melbourne. The 56 seater restaurant is a union of beautifully presented contemporary Chinese food, exceptional design and modern restaurant culture. Translating literally to ‘as you wish’, the name Ruyi derives from a Chinese heirloom symbolising power and good fortune.

The interior palate by Hecker Guthrie is a very specific nod to traditional Chinese crimson and jade colours, in a modern context which utilises oxblood accents and sage tones. The restaurant’s design is a contemporary approach to traditional Chinese colour palettes and textures, with restrained and sophisticated spaces. “Dumplings are such simple fare and so the fit out needed to have a sense of simplicity and earthiness to compliment this. We didn’t want the design to scream China; instead we wanted to subtly hint at the distinctly Asian influence” says Paul Hecker, principal of Hecker Guthrie.

In typical Hecker Guthrie style, Ruyi interior is beautifully considered and highly resolved in it’s entirety. For me, the real strength of this project lies in all the special little details – like the beautiful custom brass fixings for plywood wall panels, the way the bathroom mirror is suspended via a leather strap and gently lit from behind; the lovely conversation between the (what appears to be) handmade ceramic crockery, accent bathroom and bar wall tiles, and the textures of banquette upholstery – all three working so beautifully together and singing the same song… I really could go on for days, you know. Instead I leave you to enjoy more images in the gallery below. Well done team HG – another spectacular project under that impressively fat belt of yours.

Ruyi // 16 Liverpool Street, Melbourne.

[Photography by Sharon McGrath.]