COMPILED BY Lindi Brownell Meiring IMAGES via restaurantandbardesignawards.com
Featuring 276 projects across 43 categories, this year’s shortlist for the annual Restaurant & Bar Design Awards is packed with seriously stylish spaces, including five in South Africa.
Here, in no particular order, are 25 of this year’s many stand-out projects from across the globe.
1. The Butcher’s Daughter – Brooklyn, USA (Design: Wanderlust Design)
2. Yukanna – Bangkok, Thailand (Design: Taste Space)

Image credit: F Sections Studio.
3. Alice & Fifth – Joburg, South Africa (Design: Tristan Plessis Studio)
4. Noma – Copenhagen, Denmark (Design: Studio David Thulstrup)

Image credit: Irina Boersma.
5. Hey Yo – Hong Kong, Hong Kong (Design: Design Action & Associates)
6. Mama Mulan – Chatswood, Australia (Design: DS17)

Image credit: Michael Wee.
7. Icha Chateau – Shanghai, China (Design: Spacemen)

Image credit: Min Chen Xuan.
8. Mythos – Rosebank, South Africa (Design: Atmos Architecture and Design)

Image credit: alexioso.
9. Chotto Matte – Miami, USA (Design: Andy Martin Architecture)
10. Library Bar – Los Angeles, USA (Design: Gulla Jonsdottir Architecture + Design)

Image credit: Tanveer Badal.
11. House of Eden – Bangkok, Thailand (Design: party space design)
12. Hey Bird – Guangzhou, China (Design: Tomshi & Associates)
13. Burleigh Pavilion – Gold Coast, Australia (Design: Alexander & Co)

Image credit: Anson Smart.
14. The Skotnes – Cape Town, South Africa (Design: REDDECO)

Image credit: Claire Gunn Photography.
15. Nando’s – Syndenham, London, UK (Design: Fusion Design and Architecture)
16. Samsara – Cluj-Napoca, Romania (Design: Todor Studio)
17. Blend – Bangkok, Thailand (Design: PHTAA Living Design)

Image credit: Pichan Sujaritsatit.
18. Dr. Bravura – Shanghai, China (Design: TOWOdesign)
19. La Parada – V&A Waterfront, Cape Town, South Africa (Design: Dakota Design)

Image credit: Andrea van der Spuy.
20. Hunan Slurp – New York, USA (Design: New Practice Studio)

Image credit: Montse Zamorano.
21. Opasly Tom – Warsaw, Poland (Design: BUCK.STUDIO)
22. Pastel Rita – Montreal, Canada (Design: Appareil Architecture)

Image credit: Félix Michaud.
23. Milk Train – London, UK (Design: FormRoom)
24. Masa – Bogota, Colombia (Design: Studio Cadena)

Image credit: NahoKubota.
25. FYN – Cape Town, South Africa (Design: Tristan Plessis Studio)
View the full shortlist at restaurantandbardesignawards.com. Missed last year’s contenders and winners? Here’s a look at a few of our favourites from the shortlist, as well as those who took home the awards.