Jesuit priests praise opening of new tranquil kitchen and dining facilities
The chefs and priests at the Church of the Immaculate Conception, a residence for retired Jesuit priests in Mayfair, London, have given praise for their new tranquil, hi-spec kitchen and dining facilities.
Catering Design Group, one of the UK’s leading restaurant and commercial kitchen design companies, designed, supplied and project managed the refurbishment of the new facilities over a 2 ½ year period. CDG were originally approached by the project architects in late 2007, who were advising on a larger project build, which required specialist kitchen expertise. The project was then put on hold due to budget restraints and the arrival of the recession. In mid-2009, Catering Design Group was invited back by the church to look at a more limited project that would involve the refurbishment of the 1960s kitchen.
At this stage the church, having reviewed and liked the designs for the new kitchen, extended the brief to include the dining area. Philip Howard, Managing Director, Catering Design Group comments: “There were some great challenges with this project. One of which was that the kitchen and dining facilities lay over the top of a London Underground line – creating massive issues with noise. The 50-year-old kitchen was outdated, inefficient and would never comply with current standards. Our brief was to create a light, tranquil, restful space with a modern high quality twist, which was also comfortable and had an ambience and simplicity respectful to resident priests who had dedicated their lives to a vow of poverty.”
The kitchen layout was updated to be more effective with modern, energy efficient equipment and up-to-date finishes. To address the concerns with the London Underground line, CDG conducted extensive research into acoustic ceilings and materials, replacing the unsightly acoustic metal grid tiles, which were both on the ceiling and the walls, with a high-spec plasterboard finish, creating a warm, domestic feel, away from its current harsh commercial look.
With the facilities located in the basement, light was another major issue for the kitchen and dining facilities. The lighting in the existing dining room came from large plastic sky lights, which were in desperate need of repair and open to the outside world. CDG commissioned a lighting specialist with experience in domestic and commercial installations who installed innovative LED lighting and downlighting to create a gentle, subtle lighting system. Philip continues: “With the dining room facilities located in the basement, we had to find a way to maintain light, whilst blocking out the outside world and allowing the light to come through. Our solution was to fit skylights, which were sandblasted to one side to maintain the light but give a better finish, which gave privacy to the priests from the outside world.“
The designated space for the dining room presented further challenges in that it was home to a highly revered 16th-century statue. The space was very uneven and the statue needed to be incorporated into the limited space and wood panelling to create a feature. The solution was to create a corner piece that followed the existing lines of the wood panelling, therefore making a feature of the statue whilst making the utmost of the space.
The furniture in the dining room needed to be just right to suit the humble ambience of the surroundings. CDG took the client to a number of furniture contractors to show them what they had the potential to achieve within the budget. Wood and fabric samples were supplied, together with computer generated visuals. In the end, the client opted for a bespoke range managed by CDG. Marian Campbell, house manager at the Church of the Immaculate Conception, commented: “Catering Design Group was recommended to us by our architect and subsequently invited to tender for the refurbishment of our kitchen facilities at our central London site. From the very first meeting, we liked their approach and subsequent designs and so were happy to extend the brief to include updating our 40-year old dining room. CDG were very sympathetic to our environment and what we wanted to achieve. This is a residence for 20 Jesuit priests who wanted a simple, comfortable and yet more ambient environment for their dining room. It was also very important that both the timings of the project and the budget did not over run and in this regard we are very satisfied.
She continues: “There were many challenges with this project: London Underground’s Jubilee Line runs beneath the building and so we were very concerned about the acoustic problems. CDG gave this a great deal of thought and finally came up with the idea of a bespoke ceiling from a specialist company to allay our fears. We are delighted with the result, which together with some wonderful lighting solutions and the quality of the materials used, has very much enhanced the ambience of the dining room. CDG were also sympathetic to our desire to highlight in the awkwardly shaped dining room, a very special 16th-century statue of the Madonna and Child. After listening to our observations, they provided ideas and solutions at every turn. We wanted the finished project to include a modern, well equipped kitchen leading on to a tranquil dining room with simple lines and ambient lighting. In this regard, CDG exceeded our expectations and we are most happy to recommend them. We wish them well for the future.”
Posted by: Catering Design Group Ltd
