RODE Architects completes design of Commonwealth restaurant: restaurant, bar and market built by Cafco Construction

RODE Architects completed the design of Commonwealth, the newly opened combined restaurant/bar and food market owned by former Fenway Park executive chef Steve Postal. Located on the ground floor of Watermark II, a new modern full-service high-rise apartment complex at 250 Kendall St. in Cambridge's Kendall Sq. neighborhood, Commonwealth features a 5,200 s/f restaurant/bar, 1,300 s/f marketplace, private dining room, and outdoor patio. Restaurant projects represent unique opportunities to blend a chef's vision with the architectural response specific to a location and its spatial characteristics, lighting, and materiality. RODE envisioned a material palette of large rough architectural elements paired with warm rustic surfaces. This approach complemented the chef's vision for connecting his patrons to the farm fresh ingredients that evolve with the seasons. Backlit reclaimed wooden pallets create a lighting and visual patterning which echo the construction techniques of a rural Vermont barn. A copper bar and market counter with brick and custom steel light fixtures complete the design aesthetic. RODE worked closely with Boston-based general contractor, Cafco Construction, on the project. "Through this crazy long and sometimes painful process, RODE has done an awesome job capturing my vision for Commonwealth," said Postal. "Their hard work and commitment throughout the project, from picking out antiques at Brimfield to adjusting the lights on Friends and Family Night, has been seriously appreciated."