Shanghai-based studio Linehouse has designed two adjoining venues, one offering coffee, the other wine, and breathed new life into the humblest of materials – rattan.

The two venues, named Bird and Bitter are separated by an alleyway near Changshu Lu in Shanghai. Bitter focuses on daytime coffee and early evening aperitifs and Bird serves wine and seasonal small plates.

On entering Bird guests are greeted by a centralised bar composed of wood and rattan screens evoking a retro nostalgia, the material palette recalling a familiar domesticity from the 1970s.

A hanging rack above the bar counter creates transparency. At night the wood and rattan frames are backlit to showcase the wine bottles. The bar counter continues through the space and lines the walls as a standing leaner and wraps in front of the window.

An open kitchen window showcases the food preparation behind the wine counter, while a datum of mirrors and blackboards line the walls at eye level creating a sense of expansion and continuously reflecting activity.

Bitter is the more casual of the pair with a new bar counter inserted reflecting the material palette and humble detailing of Bird. The existing space was opened up to create an open dining room, designed to transition from daytime to early evening cocktails.

The façade opens up to the local streetscape allowing it to operate as a neighbourhood establishment within the tree-lined former French Concession.

Photography by Dirk Weiblen