Project Team
design: Bryony Proctor
Stowaway, Freshwater’s ‘small bar’ hole in the wall has jumped ship to sunnier shores – and it’s taken the locals with them.
When given the opportunity to expand their already buzzing little business to a venue three times bigger the Bryony Proctor, Oliver Iaccarino and Korey Condon of Stowaway Bar and Marilynas Famous Pizza didn’t hesitate – and with a 6 month renovation finally done and dusted they are stoked to be serving up their local style of fare again.
It’s the 1900s meets 2016 in the new venue as Stowaway brings ‘rough luxe’ to this urban beachside suburb.
The new Stowaway was designed to create a dynamic gathering place for the local community. Drawing on influences from the great British smoking rooms, alpine lodges of USA and New York industrial lofts, Stowaway offers an eclectic range of spaces to drink and dine – with reclaimed brick, recycled floorboards, rich leather banquette dining areas, giving each area its own distinct identity.
Proctor, who labored over the plans for more than a year, knew that the space had to feel organic – sincere. Having already established a successful brand up the street and hearing the cries of locals worried that they would lose the intimacy in the big move, they worked hard on the ‘un-designed’ look.
“It was imperative that we maintained the intimacy of the space. By creating rich pockets where guests can dine and drink filled with generally quirky, unexpected details. No light fixture could be purchased off the shelf -everything had to be bespoke. Either picking it up ourselves high up in cobwebbed roofs of a timber salesman or from an antique store in the country.”