Gourmet soup, sandwich and salads shop Urban Soup Kitchen (USK), founded by Rick Teh in 2009 in Shanghai, has introduced a new concept of soup to the local market where Chinese people generally see soup as a side dish, while Western soup can easily be a full meal. Recently, USK has commissioned Taiwanese designer Nicole Teng to renovate their branch on Kangding Rd.
After studying the spirit of USK – bringing affordable, healthy comfort food to urban dwellers – Nicole comes up with a chic and modern tonality for the restaurant. She decides to combine the urban chic style of NYC, where is the origin of the soup kitchen, with ‘brutal’ materials such as cement, old wood and iron that boast Nicole’s own design language. All the furniture at USK is made from recycled wood, and the bench at the terrace was from a deserted park. Nicole installs folding windows and utilizes the terrace to visually enlarge the space and bring more lights into the room. To cover the load-bearing column in the space, Nicole works with Columbian graphic artist Cruzma on the lettering graphics, adding a sense of relaxation and humor to the restaurant. The design of USK complements the branding of the restaurant as well as serving as decoration.
WHERE: SWFC Store (Lujiazui) Shanghai World Financial Center No.100 Century Ave., B106-1