The Mercury Room and Highball

Design Proposal

Design Concept/Mood Board

Both Highball and The Mercury Room are based off the concept of a juke box. A jukebox is a machine that allows the user to pick an assortment of songs to play by inserting coins into the machine. The design of each of these spaces will focus on the physical aspects of the jukebox and the music of each era. In addition, the concept of two restaurants in a single space relates to being able to pick what song you want to hear from a single jukebox machine.

Project Statement

One East Avenue is a commercial building in downtown Rochester, NY. Part of the building is vacant while other floors are occupied by various businesses. Jay Speranza, owner of Tony D’s-a restaurant in downtown Rochester-wishes to rent out the ground floor and basement of One East Ave to turn into a restaurant. The space will be separated into two different businesses. The bigger side will be called the Mercury Room which will be a sit-down dinner experience. The other side, Highball, is a quick service restaurant that focuses on takeout and delivery with a few tables available for seating.

Since there will be essentially two different restaurants in this one space, the kitchen will be located between the two spaces and act as a dividing wall between them. The kitchen on the Mercury side will be enclosed with a clear material to allow for guests to be able to see the food that is being cooked. On the Highball side, you will be able to see into the kitchen to a degree but for the most part will be enclosed.

The Mercury Room will include a hostess stand with a larger waiting room with plush and comfortable furniture. There will also be a large bar that can seat many. The dining area will have a mixture of tables and booths to accommodate everyone that comes to the restaurant. Highball will be a quick service restaurant that is focused on take-out and delivery. There will also be some tables in the space that can accommodate a smaller amount of people. In both spaces, ADA guidelines will be looked at closely to make sure that people with disabilities will feel just as welcomed into the space as people without disabilities. Although these restaurants are different, there will be some similarities to them in the fact that they will create a memorable and comfortable experience to anyone who dines in either of these spaces.