Wine Bar Design Ideas

Wine bars are enjoying a revival in Melbourne and new bars are cropping up all over the place. A favourite with the Friday night after-work drink crowd and couples whiling away a weekend afternoon, the modern wine bar bears little resemblance to the cheesy, fluorescent lit bars of the seventies, and it often combines great wine with high quality bistro-style food.

These days, atmosphere and the quality of the food are paramount and the more quirky and individual the better if you want your bar to stand out among the crowd. If you are thinking about opening up a wine bar in Melbourne, or if you feel like your current premises could use a few changes, here are a few bar design ideas to help you create the perfect ambience.

Size should be no barrier to creating a thriving wine bar, and many of the bars that are gathering the most popularity in Melbourne are small and intimate. If you only have a small space to work with, you will need to be more creative to ensure you make the most of it and create an intimate atmosphere without giving the feeling of overcrowding.

It is important not to put tables too close together if you don’t have a lot of room. If your bar faces the street, you might want to consider a raised bench with bar stools as a form of seating. It is a good idea to give your customers options of sitting at conventional tables and chairs, casual lounge seating, and bar seating so they can choose the type of seating that best suits their mood.

When you are working with a larger space you might want to break open areas up, and divide them into smaller sections to create a feeling of closeness and intimacy. You can use dividers or plants to do this effectively and create separate areas where people can feel comfortable talking and relaxing.

If you are going for a more modern appearance and feel, you can make use of larger spaces to give a clean and airy feeling and keep them open. Light coloured flooring, industrial style fittings and minimalist furniture can be a great backdrop for a funky trendy space, which will attract a younger crowd. For smaller spaces it is even more important to avoid clutter if you want to give a modern, trendy appeal. Make sure there is plenty of light and use modern furniture in light materials and colours. Mirrors can create the appearance of space and increase the light in a smaller area.

Lighting is an essential element of atmosphere, and whether you decide to go for the classic softly lit, ambient wine bar or a bright and light modern bar, it is important that the lighting matches the rest of the design. Quirky or unusual light fittings can be a great talking point, and a way to add a touch of style to your overall wine bar design.

When designing a wine bar it is important that you decide what your demographic will be. Are you hoping to attract serious wine lovers or a more casual social crowd? Your bar design will need to appeal to the customers you are hoping to attract and uphold your brand image if you want your wine bar to succeed.