A one-of-a-kind bar has landed in Warsaw designed by Piotr Maciaszek, Aleksandra Hyz and Karol Pasternak of NOKE Architects. Located in the downtown neighbourhood of Powisle, the project celebrates the Venetian art of the cicchetti bar—little snacks and drinks in an aperitivo style.

“When you go to Venice you expect to be impressed,” says Maciaszek. “Venice is easy to imagine based on a single postcard, but to live it is something completely unique. The biggest challenge was to bring this experience to the guests of Vabene Cicchetti.”

The result is a bar that feels unambiguously associated with Venice, while still feeling entirely unique. NOKE took inspiration from the colours of the Venetian flag with red and gold dominating the finishes. To capture the city’s distinct essence, the design team looked to its “Aqua Alta” for inspiration—the high water that sometimes washes the Venetian streets and into interiors. An azure green covers the floors, flooding the entire lower level. Reaching the walls and even the lower parts of legs and tables the colour creates a sensation of wading in shallow water.

Entering through a semi-circular portal, inside is a bar made of red travertine set against a backdrop of red and gold textures. The interior design is complemented by custom-made lamps made of artisan glass and designer furniture, including tables resembling Venetian posts sticking out of the canal water. In the bathroom, the element of surprise continues with distinctive black and white stripes topped with a red ceiling, a clear allusion to Venice’s famous gondoliers’ uniforms.