Jake’s City Grille, Plymouth, MN
We’re pleased to have been awarded another Jake’s City Grille in Plymouth, MN. The Walsh Bishop team is all about developing long term and rewarding relationships with our clients! Since developing the prototype concept for Owner’s Rob and Tony Jacob, we’ve designed three other facilities for the brothers, each meeting outstanding success. The concept for the casual eatery blends the energy of a city café with the comfort of a neighborhood gathering spot. The prominent and open bar creates a welcoming first impression, with the open flames of the wood fired oven adding warmth and a buzz of activity as the chef’s prepare signature dishes. The concept features private dining areas, a patio seating 150 customers with a full bar for Minnesotans craving the summer sun. The Plymouth location will be one of their largest facilities, with over 8,900 SF, but they have no worries about filling up the joint. They currently operate the building as a Jake’s Sports Café – a concept they are phasing out over several years. It’s successful for them, but with an eye to the future and growing competition, they know that their City Grille concept will out perform, not only their current revenue, but their other locations have proven thatit consistently beats the national chains. People are hungry for something unique and different from the homogenized consistency of the franchised restaurant – and the brothers are poised to deliver. Jacob Restaurant Group owns and operates three Jake’s City Grille, two Jake’s Sports Cafés and Esquire Magazine’s 2006 Best Bar in America, Nye’s Polonaise.
Freedom of Expression
Walsh Bishop is excited to talk about our recent work for Crash + Sue’s, video post-production company, in downtown Minneapolis. They asked us to reinvestigate their environment, which is increasingly becoming a creative center not only for their own company, but also an audio studio, where independent artists, web developers, and other creatives share their space. Our design team focused on delivering a dynamic office environment that values self expression and collaboration. The project consisted of reorganizing the entry, social spaces, and corridor to unify the diverse personalities within the offices and studios. The social spaces, as part of the main circulation route, unify the space and create identity, while the adjacent and adjoining rooms remain independent spaces. The studio spaces are lowly lit along parallel corridors to optimize the creation and client review of the studio’s work. The main entrance, lobby, reception, CGI suite and lounge area revel in the control of light and color, creating dynamic experiences. Pixels, parallels, filters, frames and manipulation/control of light and shadow are central to the design. All of the design elements respond to the client’s identity while providing a flexible creative office environment that can be responsive to the various voices within.
A Month of Practice Building
May was a busy month for Walsh Bishop’s LEAP Task Team! At Walsh Bishop, LEAP stands for “Leaders in Environmental Awareness and Protection.” The LEAP Task Team raises sustainability awareness, educates and provides a framework for sustainable design and operational decisions. In May, the LEAP Task Team presented Walsh Bishop’s mid-year sustainability report and created master specifications for indoor air quality (IAQ) management, environmental procedures and requirements for products. In addition, after identifying the industry need for improved logistics and management, the LEAP Task Team developed three tools that will streamline Walsh Bishop’s internal sustainable design process and provide additional value to our clients.The first tool is the Cost of LEED Matrix which identifies historic costs associated with each LEED credit. This document was produced from renowned sources, as well as from input by leading local contractors. It will be a valuable tool for guiding the Owner to feasible LEED points; and will be a great companion document to energy modeling and life cycle reports that are produced to identify payback. The second tool is the Project Management Checklist for LEED. The checklist is based on the services described in AIA Contract Document B214 Standard Form of Architect’s Services - LEED Certification. Using this document will aid in accurate budgeting, staffing, project expectation and production during each phase of the project. Lastly, the LEAP Task Team created the Checklist of Reference Standards for LEED, which will simplify the scope and technical responsibilities required by LEED projects.These innovative tools further enhance our commitment to, and experience with, sustainable design practices.
