London-based interior design studio, THDP, has unveiled its design concept for the new Pigeon Post Bar & Eatery at Hilton Cologne.
The Hilton Cologne lobby, bar and social space have been redesigned and refurbished with a modern, innovative gastronomy concept. The centrepiece of these renovations is the new ‘Pigeon Post’ – a combination of restaurant, bar and lounge and social working area.
The Pigeon Post replaces the Lobby Bar and the previous IceBar, inviting guests to enjoy special coffee specialties in the morning, after which it becomes the “Eatery” with a separate entrance for external guests. At lunchtime and in the evening, there are refned a la carte dishes on the menu.
The building was formerly Cologne’s postal savings bank in the early 1950s through to the late 1990s when, after a long vacancy, it was gutted and coverted into a Hilton hotel in 2002.
Drawing inspiration from the history of the hotel and its building, THDP has created a considered and contemporary interior, awash with fun, quirky details.
The interior scheme as a whole makes use of a simple, earthy colour palette of blue greens and greys drizzled with mustard.
One of the key elements of the space is a feature central bar, complete with a prominent overhead gantry in wood and copper colours. The table tops have been selected in faux marble effects from Dekton and Neolith – expressing the previous functionality of the building and updating the effect to offer a more intimate but modern vibe.
Seating options in the bar are either at the bar on new Stellar Works bar stools, and custom made half moon cosy booths fabricated by Hagenauer, providing private dining in a more intimate space.
The carefully cutated selection of artwork and accessories sprang from the narrative of the F&B concept. An early choice was to re-use obsolete German 70’s offce equipment and furnishings and to re-appropriate them in a relevant way.
The overall ambition was to convey a sense of heritage, with a real 1970’s vibe. Vintage mechanical typewriters, light fttings and objet d’art have been incorporated to give an aesthetic appeal and to be a curio or an ornamental talking point for Pigeon Post’s guests.
Artworks were inspired by the buildings history as a post offce, and represented using various mediums, including mixed media painting, stamp collages, ceramics, wood and digital prints created by local and international artists.
