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4 2 • r e s t a u r a n t d e v e l o p m e n t + d e s i g n • J U L Y / A U G U S T 2 0 1 5 ing patio, has lower ceiling heights, and darker fnishes and materials create a more intimate atmosphere. With the majority of the dining on the second level, most of the kitchen functions take place there, including the cook and pantry line, dishwashing sta- tion and walk-in cooler. A secondary service bar on the third level makes it easier to serve drinks there. An effcient use of space, the public stair wraps around the eleva- tor, while a service stair and dumbwaiter allow staff to run food and dishes between levels. Physically opening up each foor to the oth- ers can be a successful design strategy in such multilevel spaces, as it helps to create and maintain an integrated sensory experience on each level. "T he chal- lenge is making sure there's some way you could activate the energy of each level and make people feel like a part of the restaurant," says Joseph Vajda, Aria Group principal. "By connecting the lev- els with open space in between and the noise from the kitchen refecting up on the third level, that also helped activate that space . . . Having some of the noise connecting the levels helps you feel that energy." Playing up the height of the space inside, LED brass-fnish, metal ring pendants are suspended from the third-foor ceil- ing at varying heights and angles to create interest in the open area between foors. A wood trellis ceiling feature on the second foor travels across a sofft and climbs up a wall to the ceiling of the third foor. Photo courtesy of Aria Group Architects Inc. Matchbox 14th Street Washington, D.C. Occupying space in old, urban buildings typically presents a welcome challenge given the built-in character that can infuence design. Match- box Food Group, which operates 10 restaurants in the metropolitan D.C. market under the Matchbox, Ted's Bulletin and DC-3 brands, has embraced the challenge in many of its locations. The group's 14th Street Matchbox unit is one of several restaurants that have transformed this once-blighted neighborhood into a vibrant dining scene. That same idea carries through the old-meets-new design of the The 14th Street unit occupies a two-story, 1907 building that the company revived into an open, urban-style restaurant whose design details honor its history. Photo courtesy of Matchbox Food Group