How can clever design pay respect to the bygone days of a rundown theater that once housed a convent, school, and chemistry library? In the Dutch city of Dordrecht, Studio Modijefsky seems to have an answer. The Amsterdam-based studio recently unveiled De Witt, an all-day brasserie swathed in hues of tangerine, taupe, and Dutch blue that adhere to Dordtse kleuren, or the city’s color palette for historic spaces.
Arched lighting throughout illuminates brass mesh shades shaped like the archways adorning monastic cloisters—a nod to De Witt’s past life as a convent. Other lighting features, such as the dining room’s long cylindrical pendants, are subtly evocative of test tubes in a gesture to De Witt’s prior chapter as a chemistry laboratory, and school, too.
A mix of lounge chairs with cocktail tables, bistro seating, barstools, and booths provide ample options for everything from a beer before a movie or lunch after taking in exhibitions at the nearby art museum Kunstkerk. The menu balances light and hearty fare with a family-friendly approachability befitting its location. Main course highlights include haddock served with romanesco, and Bavette steak with baba ganoush—then again, you can’t go wrong with oysters and a classic smashburger.
