Airport watering hole goes for gold
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Standards meet style
WHEN TRAVELERS ARE ENCAMPED at hotel near an airport for a night or two, the temptation to hop in a cab for more pleasing surroundings looms large. The Winnipeg Hilton Airport Suites hotel wanted to provide just such a positive environment when it enlisted Susan Rea, principal at Susan Rea Interior Design of Winnipeg, Man.
The 3,660 square foot restaurant and lounge, as well as guest suite washrooms were tasked to Rea as part of a renovation project at the location. “They had updated the rooms maybe three or four years ago,” says Rea, “but they hadn’t done the washrooms. We used all the same tile for the walls and for the floors.
“The millwork changed a little bit depending on the floor plan.”
Porcelain tile in two or three different variations were employed by Rea. “A couple of different ones on the walls and around the showers and bathtub areas. Then we had another one on the floors.”
A different style of ceramic tile was chosen for the restaurant floors. “That was one of their standards,” says Rea, referring to the Hilton chain of hotels. “I really wanted them to go with the vinyl plank, but they really wanted to stick with ceramic tile. I wasn’t thrilled about that because I was worried about the noise factor and the hardness of it. “The vinyl is easier to walk on and even without an underlay it is quieter than the tile is. The tile just echoes the sound in the space.”
According to Rea, she was hired to give the spaces a more contemporary and upscale look on a minimal budget.
“The biggest challenge that we had was to reuse the existing vanity counters and the restaurant tables,” she says. “All of those were made out of a gold-coloured granite that was really dated.” The challenge was met by adding other gold tones in more contemporary materials.
“We used the gold as an accent colour with a background of contrasting neutrals,” she said.
The main part of the project for Rea was in the bar area of the restaurant. “The renovation tripled the size of the bar. We had these custom designed and made bar stools that had a gold-toned upholstery on them with a button tufting.”
The local workers here are really happy because the function of the restaurant is greatly improved, according to Rea. “Before there was a central kind of a service area that was a room.
Now the bar is open to the entire restaurant. The staff can monitor everything.
“The Airport Hilton management are happy with the look of it. I spoke to the general manager in Winnipeg and he said they had positive reviews.”