2022 Eat Drink Design Awards: Best Cafe Design

Jury comment

Working within an airport to find joy in an anonymous fitout shell and securing a high-quality design outcome are both achievements of note. The Common reaches these benchmarks and goes well beyond, providing an excellent airside-viewing dining experience. This experience is specifically shaped to give arriving domestic visitors a “first taste” of Queensland through bold colour, rich materiality, light and openness. Taking visual cues from the beachside lifestyle that Queensland boasts along its coastline, The Common has been conceptualized somewhat like an abstract painting. It is furnished liberally with Australian-designed pieces by Ross Gardam, DesignByThem and Linear Standard. Light fittings, hardware and custom finishes such as polished plaster have been installed, with a colour palette specially conceived for this particular installation. The outcome gives this transitory space a memorable sense of place and identity. It is the opposite of a “placeless” airport venue, working both with and against the homogeneity of the backdrop. It proves that good Australian design has a role to play in even the most generic of social and civic spaces, the twenty-first-century airport.

Design statement

Located alongside the outer glazing line of Brisbane’s domestic airport terminal, The Common enjoys outlook over the airside apron and high exposure to the concourse walkway. Bold forms, a saturated colour scheme and a playful energy distinguish the cafe within the busy yet visually homogeneous airport environment. The client sought a venue with a strong visual identity and broad customer appeal, which enhanced the latent qualities offered by an east-facing tenancy viewed “in the round.” Tenancy design guidelines stipulated that the venue should reflect “the Queensland experience.” The design was approached via abstract rather than literal reference to the bright and relaxed ambience of beachside living. Abundant daylight is filtered and coloured by fabric blinds, producing a diffuse golden glow across the length of the space. Profiled ceramic tiles, colour-matched terrazzo and micro-cement finishes provide a textural, earth-toned foundation, complemented by the sand-hued counter and Venetian plaster. Analogous to scattered beach paraphernalia, the palette is accentuated by branding and custom-designed fixtures, including suspended bar display, menu boards, a heat lamp and playfully shaped, overscaled pendant lights.

The Common, Brisbane Airport Domestic Terminal, is built on the land of the Turrbal and Jagera peoples.

Project credits

Designer Sullivan Skinner Project team Tahnee Sullivan, Christopher Skinner

See the whole gallery of images at the Eat Drink Design Awards website.

The 2022 Eat Drink Design Awards are organized by Architecture Media and supported by principal partner James Richardson Furniture, major partner Blind Corner, supporting partners Roca, No Rock and Latitude, and event partner Stomping Ground.

The Eat Drink Design Awards are endorsed by the Australian Institute of Architects and the Design Institute of Australia.