G'DAY THE JAPANESE WAY

Words  ::  Will Jones  //  Images  ::  Derek Swalwell

Contrary to popular belief in the northern hemisphere not all of Australia is dominated by tinny-swillin’ throw-another-kangaroo-on-the-barbie macho men in sleeveless t-shirts! Our cousins down under are actually a rather cultured bunch, and influences from their relatively near-neighbours in Asia can be found in architecture, music, art and cuisine. So much so that one of the newest, most hip new places to visit in Melbourne is a sake bar.
Maedaya Bar is located in Richmond, an inner-city neighbourhood once dominated by heavy industry, but now an up-coming residential area with a mix of old and new architecture and a lively social scene. Tucked away in a side street, where only the most curious of drinker will find it, this new addition will test residents’ levels of hip to the max, with a combination of sleek design and the adoption of Japanese style and culture.
Bar designer, Architects EAT, has created two main spaces of startling contrast. Downstairs at first floor level, the sake bar is clad in thick Manila ropes. Secured at one end, slung up and over rods to create a vaulted ceiling and held in tension at the other end, they create a striking space with a slightly hushed ambiance. Between the ropes are timber sake lockers where, after imbibing this rice wine that is such an acquired taste, customers can stow their unfinished bottle until their next visit to the bar.
This buy-a-bottle idea is a custom in Japan, where the walls of bars will often be lined with half-consumed bottles labelled with their owners’ names. Architects EAT has taken sake culture and interpreted it to inform the design of the bar. “Traditionally sake is bottled in wooden casks and secured with ropes,” explains Albert Mo. “Current commercial methods of bottling sake are similar to that of wine – now commonly available in twist tops. Our interest lies in the bounding of the cask using ropes. We chose to investigate and translate our interpretation of ‘bounding’ with the use of Manila ropes. They are held in tension at specific points forming a shape of a house or a hut because a house, whether it be a tea house or sake house, is a sacred place in Japanese tradition. It is a place where people drink in harmony.”
Upstairs is the altogether different space for eating. “Here we wanted to achieve a sense of humbleness,” says Mo. “There is no attempt to apply any embellishments because we wanted the cooking to embody the purpose of this space.” White washed walls, Japanese black stained timber flooring, simple timber benches and raw stainless steel canopies are all there is. The effect is magical, in a kind of clinical way.

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