Atlanta’s hotly anticipated Nobu restaurant has arrived at last in the city’s tony Buckhead enclave. Part of a new hotel by the same, it perpetuates design precedents first established by famed chef Nobu Matsuhisa in 1994 but enjoys updates inspired by Atlanta’s arboreal environs. The 272-seat eatery takes its cues from traditional Japanese pavilions with on-site pocket gardens and classical ikebana arrangements.
Rockwell Group’s scheme marries Nobu’s iconic scorched-ash tabletops with abstract shoji paper chandeliers reminiscent of paper lanterns and a bar of backlit white onyx (“a nod to the translucency of chef Nobu’s fish,” says Rockwell Group partner Greg Keffer) complemented by a 12-foot river rock installation care of local sculptor Kevin Chambers.
