An open brief taken all the way: name, identity, rooms, food and drink, training and launch, planned as one engagement.
- My role
- Led the engagement through Breakthrough Design Studio
- Scope
- Concept, naming, identity, design, food and drink, training, launch, website and social media
- Format
- Rooftop restaurant and bar
- Opened
- 2026
The brief
When the studio began, the site had no plan beyond being a food and drink business. Everything from the name onward was created from scratch, for owners whose own team now runs it.
One engagement, not a hand-off
Ālaya was planned as one sequence: site, concept, name, brand, rooms, food and drink, people, launch and digital. Planning it that way meant every decision could be checked against the same idea, rather than being handed between separate consultants.
What the engagement produced
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Name and concept
The name Ālaya and the idea of the venue, created from an open brief.
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Identity
Brand identity and graphics, carried into signage and details such as the monogram table lamps.
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Rooms
Interiors for the dining hall, the bar and the rooftop terrace, by day and by night.
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Food and drink
The food and drink programme, from breakfast to the cocktail list.
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Training and operations
Operational set-up and staff training. I used AI to help structure training documents, recipe cards and launch content; the methods and human checks are shared through AI for Hospitality.
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Launch and digital
Launch planning, photography direction, the website and social media.
Gallery
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The terrace by day -
The bar -
With the bar team -
With the bartenders -
Breakfast -
The terrace frontage at night
Credits
Concept to opening: Breakthrough Design Studio, led by Rish Saini, for the venue’s owners, whose team runs Ālaya. Interior and food photographs from Rish’s own shoots; team photographs by the launch photographer.