Hunter & Co Deli in Elsternwick, Melbourne by Mim Design.

The large rose-coloured curved concrete counter at Hunter & Co Deli in Melbourne has been designed to resemble the fleshy pink hue of cured meat—specifically sliced salami. Located in Elsternwick in the city’s southeast, it’s the work of local South Yarra-based studio Mim Design. The concept takes very literal inspiration from antipasti and all that makes the deli slash bar great: bocconcini balls and slithers of camembert, mortadella, and chilled rosé.

Owned by Ben Jager & Charlotte Spong (whose kitchen history includes Melbourne hotspots like Nobu, Pei Modern, Botanical, and The Melbourne Wine Room), the Elsternwick space is a new, larger premises and an upgrade from their original Croydon delicatessen.

Above the custom pink and white flecked salami inspired concrete bar are pendant lights inspired by a string of bocconcini. The deli counter has been moulded out of concrete to resemble the texture of camembert cheese, and walls of the deli and mezzanine wine room are painted an unmistakable shade of mortadella pink. Despite lashings of dense cheese and meaty pink, it’s not overwhelming and feels sophisticated rather than kitsch. Ground black concrete floor, white square-cut tiles, and matt black shelving and seating both accent and soften the sharper flavours of the space.

See more projects by Mim Design on Yellowtrace here.

[Images courtesy of Mim Design. Photography by Peter Clarke.]