03/17/2026
We celebrate our 35 Year anniversary
Every Tuesday we showcase one of our Landmark Projects.
💡 Great design doesn’t always start with large spaces.
It starts with us SEEING POSSIBILITIES where OTHERS SEE LIMITS.
One of our restaurant clients once leased a very compact space — but with hidden potential:
• a basement
• a main floor
• sufficient height to introduce a mezzanine
Instead of seeing constraints, we saw THE design opportunities.
Our team immediately began exploring space planning, operational ergonomics, and regulatory feasibility to transform the space into a fully functioning restaurant.m (a staff service elevator discretely located, linked all three floor levels)
CAFÉ BAROQUE - OUR DESIGN CONCEPT
The location demanded something special.
Facing the Montreal Museum of Contemporary Art and located in the vibrant festival district anchored by the Montreal International Jazz Festival, the concept evolved naturally into a restaurant inspired by the great eras of modern art.
🔹 Mosaics animated the mezzanine bulkhead inspired by legendary SpanishArchitect Antonio Gaudi.
🔹 A circular staircase wrapped around an “obstacle” column, transforming it into a sculptural focal point.
🔹 Large suspended paintings by a local artist — inspired by the spirit of Matisse, Monet, and Picasso — formed a semi-circular gallery visible both from inside the restaurant and from the street.
🔹 Booths and railings echoed the same GaudĂ-inspired language, reinforcing the artistic narrative of the space.
✳️ The project became a remarkable business success, was nominated among the 🏆 BEST RESTAURANT DESIGNS of 2003, and years later — despite ownership changes — the core design structure still stands.
A reminder that sometimes the most creative projects begin with the smallest spaces.
The Groupe Design Team on this Café Baroque project were:
Pascal Marthet
Marc-Antoine Valentin
Stanislas Bittner
Hervé Legrand
Dimitri Smolens
Yves Archambault
Because after 35 years of projects, we believe one thing:
Design should not only look good — it should perform.
SUCCESS IS DRIVEN BY DESIGN — POWERED BY CLEVER IDEAS.
