Located on one of Shanghai’s busiest pedestrian streets, Shanghai Love was created by the vision of Kia Parsai, founder of the famous homonymous beer brand.

This first flagship restaurant and bar is not simply a drinking place but a flexible space created to celebrate beer culture in all its forms through inclusive events, fine food pairings and sophisticated signature cocktail tastings.

Set at the very center of the lofty room, the beer staplers arise from the  ground like two giant red fountains  from which the spatial concept originates, becoming generators of geometries and shapes that develop throughout the rest of the venue.

Instead of being hidden, the complex system of pipes that brings the beer  from the cellar to the central bar has been deliberately highlighted with  the characteristic red of Shanghai  Love logo. This way, the bar becomes the beating heart of the space and, by extension, of the brand itself.

The flexibility of the space and the possibility to open the inside to the outside were since the very beginning the guiding elements of the design.

Thanks to a careful demolition of the original facades, it was possible to brighten the space with two large openable windows overlooking the busy Maoming Lu and the quieter side alley, creating a strong connection with the city and the surroundings and making it the perfect spot for a casual meeting with friends, an outdoor DJ set or a formal event.

In contrast with the characteristic pre-painted red steel of the central bar, we chose black and white geometric-patterned floor tiles that  follow and highlight the shapes of the bar and the restaurant area directly facing the open kitchen.

For the vertical surfaces, on the other hand, we chose a warm contrasting material such as cherry wood which, with its characteristic reddish veins, blends perfectly with the rest of the space.

More than a restaurant with a bar, Shanghai Love is a restaurant that revolves around a bar, starting from the element that gave birth to all  its successful history: crafted beer.

Project information and credits:

Design: Q&A Studio

Design team: Gianmaria Quarta, Michele Armando, Lorenzo Trucato, Carlin Sun, Xinyi You

Client: Shanghai Love Brewing Co.

Location: Shanghai (China)

Built area: 120 sqm

Completion: March 2023

Photographer: Haha Lu