Doubletree Hilton Leeds: Sky Lounge
The Doubletree Hilton Leeds has recently unveiled its new rooftop cocktail bar âSky Loungeâ which offers delicious food and breath-taking panoramic views of Leeds and Yorkshire. Sat on the 13th floor of the hotel, the lounge offers a range of dining experiences to enjoy both by day and by night.
The hotel itself is situated in the Granary wharf area in Leeds City Centre and is only a few minutesâ walk away from Leeds Railway Station and the cityâs shipping district. With contemporary rooms that have 42-inch flat screen TVs, walk-in showers, complimentary Wi-Fi and bottled water, the hotel is perfect for a weekend city break.
ADBA Design worked closely with Doubletree Hilton to create a unique bar that sits seamlessly amongst the rest of the luxury hotel. Senior Designer at ADBA Design and Lead Designer on this project, Paul Siebke worked with the Valor team to come up with the design concept and developed it alongside the Sky Lounge team. âWe developed the design with close input from the lounge team to make sure the design didnât just look great but lets the bar function smoothly as well,â commented Paul.
He added: âThe design brief was clear from the start. It was to create a destination for Leeds locals and visitors to meet â not for it to be just another hotel bar. With its stunning location and views, the Sky Lounge was already halfway there but we felt it deserved a bit of a lift and an injection of sophistication. The Doubletree team âgotâ the concept immediately and were able to provide the right offer of tempting cocktails with a mouth-watering menu to compliment the venue.â
The 430m2 cocktail bar comprises the main bar area, a VIP and private dining area as well as an area that can be set up for meetings and events with its own bar. The interior design was created with luxury in mind. âImagine taking the glamour of a Las Vegas Hotel and then injecting the warmth of an exclusive Swiss ski-chalet and youâre almost there. The Sky Lounge will have a broad appeal from smart city dwellers looking for somewhere classy for a high-powered business lunch to trendy urbanites looking for a fun, sophisticated venue for evening meet-ups. But, importantly, the Sky Lounge will also provide the ideal location to invite the world to see what Leeds has to offer,â added Paul.
The colour scheme combines a rich pallet of umber and browns with pewter, silver and gold metallics and accents of Spectra Yellow and Rhodamine Red. âWe really wanted to blend textures, mixing and combining warm timber finishes with shiny metallics, granite and crystal to create a sophistication that had real warmth. To add an extra touch of luxury reindeer hides have been used to decorate the sumptuous leather seating,â commented Paul. âWe also used a combination of vertical lines with feature bar lighting and wall panelling/partitions which is softened and complemented by a repeated hexagonal device to create a pleasing retro feel.â
Luxury finishes have been used throughout the cocktail bar including seating which been custom designed and built using classic and retro designs all made in the north of England. âLighting also plays a huge part in the design as the bar had to be appealing and bright during the day but transform into a totally dramatic space at night-time,â added Paul. Other standout features of the Sky Lounge include the spectacular floor to ceiling views which have been framed using modern windows and the terrace area which has heating and external lounge seating.
As with any projects, there were challenges that Paul and his team faced. âThere were 3 key challenges with this project. Firstly, getting layout right was important as the bar is extremely popular so operational functionality is key but, equally, having a layout and seating plan that has flexibly for a range of experiences was important too. Secondly, we had to create a calculated balance between opulence and sophistication â gold taps might sound expensive but itâs often the case they end up looking tacky. Lastly, providing a luxury, timeless venue design is straightforward if you have a âmoney no objectâ approach. Hilton has very strong brand values, but as a global chain itâs critically important to provide a scheme which is capable of being rolled out to similar venues. What (I hope) we have done, is create a designer catwalk feel with a boutique budget,â commented Paul. âItâs been immense fun to work on a project where anything was possible. That said itâs always a huge responsibility working for an internationally renowned brand so itâs been a great milestone for us to get the project completed and now we can look at future projects.â
Contract Furniture UK Ltd
Contract Furniture UK Ltd, has over 20 yearsâ experience in supplying internal and external contract furniture as well as fixed seating to public houses, night clubs, hotels, golf & sports clubs, major breweries as well as many other customers within the leisure industry. The company pride themselves in their dedication to providing quality products along with a first class service to their clientele, whether big or small and whatever the style; classic, traditional, modern, contemporary or bespoke.
Some of Contract Furniture UK Ltdâs latest clients include The Stonegate Pub Company including their Slug & Lettuce group of pubs & The Living Room, Manchester (with their specially designed & engraved tables for The Haig Club), David Lloyd Leisure with some of Contract Furniture UK Ltdâs furniture even appearing on their TV advert, Miller & Carter Steak Houses for Mitchells & Butlers and of course The Double Tree Sky Lounge in Leeds for Hilton Hotels.