The new Pras Bar in Warsaw was built at 1a Zajęcza Street and its interior was designed by architects from the Sojka & Wojciechowski studio. The owners of the new Bar Prasowy run two of Warsaw’s legendary milk bars: the first Bar Prasowy on Marszałkowska street (near Plac Zbawiciela) will soon celebrate 70 years of existence. Another is Bar Gdański in Muranów, which is equally well known to Varsovians. The time has now come to create a third establishment that is an extension of the history of the original on Marszałkowska Street.
Long live the Milk Bars! They experienced their second youth a decade ago, but today, in times of general crisis, a tasty meal at a reasonable price is once again worth its weight in gold. Poles have become accustomed to eating out, but lunch prices in large cities have long since topped the mythical PLN 30 and are still rising. The owners of the “Mleczarnia” dairy bar chain are well aware of this situation. They have been running them for many years, and their crown jewels are the legendary “Prasowy” and “Gdański” dairies. The former in particular has been evoking good associations for years, so when they decided to open another location the idea of referring to the legend (which is celebrating its 70th birthday this year) appeared.
To work on the project, the investors invited architects from the Sojka&Wojciechowski studio, with whom they had already worked on the original Press Bar. After all, who better to interpret its new look. The architects actually decided to play with references to the original 2012 design. However, the main idea was to create a versatile version of the dairy, up-to-date for today’s times. No slouch for a chic restaurant, rather a new interpretation of a place for everyone. Where students and retirees will feel equally comfortable, as well as businessmen who will unsentimentally swap trendy restaurants for the classic ‘mleczak’ as part of the fashion for saving money. A place that will not stand out aesthetically from the rapidly developing Powiśle and the numerous new investments (including the Powiśle Combined Heat and Power Plant across the street).
Coming back to design, any of the regulars of the original Prasowy can play with references, both in colours, materials and patterns, e.g. the mosaic on the floor in Prasowy on Marszałkowska Street is the only surviving element of the original 1950s decor, so it could not be missing here. Also distinctive is the large black wall, which harks back to the original.
It was originally made of black lacquered glass, but in the new bar’s 2012 design, the glass has been replaced by a massive black laminated wall with space for the distinctive letters. Now its form has been simplified as much as possible but it still plays a central role in the premises. We won’t reveal the other elements; let everyone have fun finding them on their own by visiting both the original Prasowy on Marszałkowska Street and its new incarnation on Zajęcza 1a. All the more so because, as part of the 70th anniversary celebrations, the menu has been refreshed and Grzegorz Łapanowski is responsible for its new look, bringing classic Polish cuisine to a new level.
About the studio:
Sojka & Wojciechowski – we founded our studio in 2004, while we were still students at the Faculty of Interior Design of the Academy of Fine Arts in Warsaw. We started by designing small functional forms and interior designs for magazines. To date, together we have designed over 100 interiors – private and public: from a 30-square-metre studio to a 600-square-metre sports club in the centre of Warsaw
Despite the passage of time, we like to call ourselves a young design studio. Over and over again, we draw inspiration from the city we live in by traversing it on a scooter, skateboard or motorbike. We successfully reconcile the latest trends with classic, avant-garde, industrial forms, always approaching each project with a fresh perspective. You can read more about the studio here: http://sojkawojciechowski.pl
Design team: Mikołaj Wojciechowski, Konrad Sojka, Maciej Granecki / Sojka & Wojciechowski / http://sojkawojciechowski.pl
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