Zero Waste Bistro, a temporary restaurant commissioned by the Finnish Cultural Institute in New York was presented at WantedDesign Manhattan, during NYCxDesign in May 2018. Designed by Linda Bergroth, and co-curated by Bergroth and designer Harri Koskinen, Zero Waste Bistro was built on themes of circular economy, new material innovations, and sustainable design.
"We aimed to create an eye-opener, a statement, a trigger for discussion on how critical it is to embrace sustainability in everything we do – how every design project should be about sustainability. The resonance for Zero Waste Bistro has been overwhelming and we’re very excited being recognized by Frame", states the Executive Director of the Finnish Cultural Institute in New York, Kaarina Gould, who commissioned the project.
The space, designed by Linda Bergroth was crafted entirely of recycled and recyclable materials, using sustainable design pieces – iconic Finnish furniture and tableware that last from generation to generation. Each partner and collaborator was invited through the curating process and selected on the basis of their stake in sustainability. The Finnish Design Shop and Artekbrought in sustainable made-to-last tableware and furniture; Durat launched their new recycled composite collection; Kotkamills presented their repulpable disposable cups; Sulapac a completely new plastic-free packaging material; Oklin the 24h food compostor and Finnair as a sustainable airline flew the designers and chefs in from Helsinki to New York. The drinks for the daily cocktail hours were provided by Kyrö Distillery, world's northernmost distillery known for their award-winning Napue Gin.
"I'm so thrilled to be awarded and for a project like Zero Waste Bistro to be recognized this way. This was a dream project to work on, I loved the challenge of having an uncompromising brief to design something that would truly be about the circular economy and bring something new to the language of sustainable design", says designer Bergroth.
The Helsinki-based Restaurant Nolla was invited to create the food concept for Zero Waste Bistro. Their philosophy is simple: “Refuse, reduce, reuse, and only as a last resource, recycle.” To successfully complete the zero-waste ideology, Nolla founders Luka Balac, Albert Franch Sunyer, and Carlos Henriques work directly with producers to rethink, reject and control packaging. The menu for the Zero Waste Bistro tasting sessions reflected the Nordic heritage of the chef's home town Helsinki, as well as their Mediterranean roots. Everything was sourced from sustainable producers, without packaging.
The Frame Awards
The Frame Awards, hosted by Frame, a leading media platform for design professionals, identify and honor the world’s best interior projects and the people behind them. In total 34 awards are divided under Spatial, Executional, and Societal Awards covering the entire spectrum of interiors. frameawards.com
