Bishop Design by Paul Bishop have been shortlisted for Restaurant – Africas & Middle East Award in The International Hotel and Property Awards 2021.

The brief for Carna was simple, yet the result is breath-taking. Discovered on the 74th floor SLS Hotel & Residences, Carna was to be a contemporary steakhouse and immersive meat experience. Bishop Design by Paul Bishop were given the freedom to explore their own interpretations of what this space should be, from the navigation and functionality through to the very finite details.

Meat is art, from the preparation through to the first taste, and it is this story Bishop Design by Paul Bishop aimed to capture through the interior. Starting the journey at the very beginning, you appreciate the butcher to be a respectable symbol of society; a community monarch. Their ancient trait is passed down through generations, and it’s this authentic craftsmanship that seethes through every crevice within Carna. Dario Cecchini, the chef at the helm, is a prime example of this famed tradition. He absorbed his father’s business in 1976 and since then has led a pursuit to promote the artistic ritual of meat, all whilst promoting sustainability.

As one steps through, grandeur and opulence take centre stage. The first thing that many will notice is the vastness of the environment in which they find themselves. Open ceilings decorated with leather knife sharpening belts in geometric seamless patterns contribute to the infinite depth of space. A retail area is bursting with hand cut delicacies and condiments, emphasizing the restaurants entire narrative.

On the left resides a theatrical bar where seductive red provides a colour bomb to an architectural wardrobe otherwise dressed in shades of green and brown. It is here where guests are invited to indulge in a pre-dinner cocktail crafted by the finest of mixologists. Whiskey is on the menu, as the restaurant offers the largest range of its kind throughout the UAE. The drinks may well be Old Fashioned, but the interiors are very much contemporary. Hand cut green tiles provide the backdrop to a magnificent showcase of rustic brass finishes which elegantly display the bars liquor sensations.

This venue brings something utterly unprecedented to Dubai, with no other steakhouse competing in this calibre. The dedication and emphasis Bishop Design by Paul Bishop have placed on the core element, meat, is ironically what other regional concepts are missing. Conjuring up memories of food markets, where the style is inherently very NYC, the space is almost instantly familiar and has an innate sense of authenticity.

Bishop Design by Paul Bishop

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