Boxing Room

San Francisco, USA

Restaurants, Bars, Clubs

Architects: Piechota Architecture

Location: 399 Grove Street, 94102 San Francisco, USA
Year: 2014

Housed in what used to be a Standard Shirts Factory, originally built in the 1800s, the Boxing Room’s design seems restrained at first, almost industrial. Thick girders and columns of rough-finished timber and reclaimed fir siding define the rough contours of the space, while more finely sanded exposed beams above create a lofty sense of depth. Over time, the project’s more refined details begin to reveal themselves. Long, slender cylindrical pendant lights hang from the beams and snake their way across the space, following the contours of a polished zinc racetrack bar. Stools finished with brass rivets also follow the line of the counter, contrasting its cool zinc top with their rich auburn leather. Behind the counter, the building’s heavy metal cross-braced structure marks a boundary between the open kitchen and the dining space.

These weighty materials lend a sense of gravity to the space, but a set of large, ring-shaped light fixtures with a slight mother-of-pearl finish hang from the ceiling and add a touch of levity in just the right spots. Windows line the perimeter, becoming expansive as they turn the front corner, allowing sunlight to wash into the space.