In London, the awarding ceremony of the international Design et al award for the design of restaurants in hotels for 2023 was recently held. The first award was given to designer Sa’ar Tzafir and his team for the design work for the Lota Hachshara restaurant, located in the Gali Kinneret hotel of the Israel Canada chain.
The reasons for receiving the award were, among other things, for combining European hospitality heritage with Israeli tradition in the design. The Lota restaurant is a testimony to this in which a combination of the beauty and the history of the restaurant’s location is emphasized.
The Lota restaurant is named after the hotel’s first manager, Lota Eisenberg, and was designed inspired by Lota’s roots and is a celebration of Israel’s famous flavors: organic yet refined. The design of the restaurant is made of natural materials, with a combination of eye-catching arches, green ceramic tiles inspired by the olive trees in the area and tall windows overlooking the Sea of Galilee.
This significant achievement for an Israeli designer emphasizes not only the expertise of Sa’ar Zafarir and his studio, but also the significant contribution to the world of hospitality design.
Saar Zafarir, owner of the SZ DESIGN office in Amsterdam, says: “I am proud to receive the global award from Design et al, as working on this exciting project has been a privilege for me and our team. We put deep thought into every project we take on to create spaces that are Forgotten who offer a unique experience to each guest and this recognition is the reason for our passion and hard work. The renovation and design of the mythical hotel on the banks of the Sea of Galilee was greatly influenced by the long-standing tradition of the place. There are two pillars to the narrative around which we designed the hotel, the first is archaeological remains found in its surroundings, and the second is its image of Lotte Isenberg, the hotel’s manager in the 1940s and 1950s. At that time, everyone was staying at the hotel, it is said that even Paula Ben-Gurion would stand in the kitchen to cook Ben-Gurion the food he loved. Lotte was the living figure behind it all, coming from Europe and bringing with her the atmosphere and strictness to the beach Sea of Galilee. The whole style we created is a mix between her figure and the theme of antiquity, with the addition of a lot of respect for the amazing view of the water.”
Photo by Amit Giron
