Benihana
London
Tattenhall
Plank
Explore this floor
Benihana
Benihana Covent Garden unfolds across Tattenhall and Ollerton oak La Villaine designed the 7,717 sq ft flagship as a setting for teppanyaki showmanship, drawing on natural materials and Japanese references. Tattenhall was selected for the entrance and bar. Ollerton appears in the basement’s private dining rooms. Mathilde Le Villain has worked with Ted Todd for more than 15 years and approached the project with specific products in mind. Our team supported the final specification, assessing Tattenhall and Ollerton against the contract, durability and sourcing requirements of the restaurant.
- Hospitality
- Leisure
- Location
- London
- Featured product
- Tattenhall and Ollerton
Project Overview
With its heritage firmly rooted in Japanese culture, Benihana in Covent Garden offers its customers a unique and flamboyant Teppanyaki dining experience.
Featuring over 200 seats, spread over two floors with exclusive private dining rooms, this new £2m restaurant relocated from its previous home in London’s Piccadilly in 2022.
With this move came the redevelopment of 7,717 square feet building – a project that was given to interior design studio La Villaine – a studio that specialises in hospitality interiors and delivers high-quality service and unique designs.
Project Requirements
A cool brand with a strong internationally renowned identity, the project required a bold interpretation of an established style.
Benihana was founded by Hiroaki ‘Rocky’ Aoki in 1964 in New York. A Japanese-born American amateur wrestler, Rocky’s vision popularised the famous teppanyaki cooking style. As such the restaurant’s design had to respect the rich heritage of the brand.
All about showmanship, the skill of the chefs’ is the focus of the restaurant as they entertain diners with their creative food preparation. This is done on traditional hibachi grills right in front of customers, ultimately creating the heart of the project requirements.
The founder of La Villaine, Mathilde Le Villain said, “We have been working on the new flagship Benihana restaurant in Covent Garden, a new look for our favourite teppanyaki restaurant. Mixing Japanese traditional inspiration and contemporary style, this new restaurant is a humble theatre for the chefs to show off their talents and delight their guests with an exclusive experience.”
How did we help
Natural materials underpin the entire scheme – a characteristic synonymous with Japanese interiors. As such two of our Ted Todd floors, Ollerton and Tattenhall, were chosen for the project. Having worked with Mathilde for over 15 years, she had an informed idea of which products she would like to use to align with her vision for the Benihana interior.
Why the floor was chosen
Mathilde explained, “Before thinking about the design, we needed to make sure the floor would be suitable for contract use and would suit our sustainability requirements. Thinking about the look, we just knew they were right when we saw them.”
Tattenhall is a rich, natural toned floor delivering the traditional aesthetic of white oak – a timber that’s historically been used in Japanese interiors.
“We went with the Tattenhall timber, in the bar area as it has the timeless, warm, and humble qualities we were looking for. The idea was to create a welcoming, and open environment as the guests are entering the space,” added Mathilde.
Ollerton has a muted black tone and silvery grain, which creates a distinctive look that demands attention, especially when paired with the contrasting light walls. Both floors add texture, having been lightly brushed to accentuate the natural grain.
Explaining this flooring choice, Mathilde said, “We chose Ollerton for the basement’s private dining rooms as we wanted to achieve a Black Japan look – dramatic and luxurious.
It was important for the materials that were used in the design to age well in a leisure setting. Both of these floors, being a natural product, will naturally darken over time adding to the beauty of the timber.”
They are also incredibly durable floors (when cared for correctly), making them the perfect choice for high-traffic areas.
Outcome
The interior brings together key elements of Japanese design. Lighting and texture are used to elevate the space and clean materials demonstrate an appreciation of beauty.
The energetic ambience of the scheme is a perfect blend of Japanese aesthetics and unique design required for a modern-Asian restaurant.
It’s well known that Benihana pioneered the Teppanyaki dining concept and helped bring Japanese food into the mainstream. This new venue continues to evolve its offer with a dedicated, Instagram-friendly “feature Teppan” table showing how the brand is still relevant and continues to offer an exceptional dining experience in an impressive interior setting.
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Interior Designer: LA VILLAINE
Image Credit: Benihana
Tattenhall and Ollerton
Tattenhall is a richly toned oak floor with warm, natural colouring that recalls the white oak traditionally used in Japanese interiors. Ollerton has a muted black tone and silvery grain, establishing the Black Japan character of the private dining rooms. Light brushing accentuates the natural grain of each floor, with both selected for high-traffic commercial use.
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