Ten Restaurant

Ten Restaurant is the Toronto home of chef Julian Bentivegna, an award-winning chef's table built around an intimate ten-course experience for ten guests. The renovation by Lloydlondon Architects treats dining as theatre. Guests arrive into a bright, airy lounge at the front of the space where they can pause for a drink before service.

When service begins, guests are led through a large timber millwork screen, the practice's 'aperture', which shifts the mood from bright and open to dark, cosy and intimate. Lower ceilings and dark materials form a 'black box' around the brightly lit chef's stage, drawing the eye to the bar where the food is prepared. Seating heights vary so that every guest keeps a clear view of the kitchen.

Accessibility was treated as part of the design rather than an afterthought. A ramp and an accessible chef's table are integrated into the scheme, a considered response in a city where step-free dining spaces remain hard to find. A hand-made tile mosaic, inspired by wallpaper uncovered during construction, was designed by the practice and crafted with the chef and friends; leftover broken tile was reused as aggregate in the custom concrete lounge tables.

The completed restaurant occupies a single level of around 111 m2 (1,200 ft2) and was finished in 2019.

Architect: Lloydlondon Architects (Luc Johnston, Nancy Chao, with Elizabeth Antczak). Photography: Remi Carreiro.