Anyone who has dined out with me knows that restaurant lighting is one of my obsessions. When you share a meal with a loved one or a group of friends, you want the focus to be all on your table and your special time together. You want to be wrapped in a cocoon of warmth, mystery, imagination, and intimacy. You want to hide your imperfections. It’s human. Since the Stone Age, we have shared stories and meals around the campfire, concentrating on whatever is gently roasting on the end of the stick, and delighting in each other’s faces, animated by the flickering light. The outside world is blacked out.
Fast food outlets and airport terminals are designed to be lit in a certain way, so you don’t get too comfortable and stay too long. Casinos are lit the way they are to keep you awake. But when I sit down for a cocktail and a beautifully cooked meal, I don’t want to get a UV tan.
I hate battery-operated candles. When we first opened Superfrico in 2021, we had to jump through so many hoops to get actual flaming candles on the tables. The fire regulations in Las Vegas are very strict. I get that. But finding a candle holder that satisfied the rules and looked good was a battle, and a real exercise in trial and error. When we created the secret Vestry bar at the Atomic Saloon, we had a priest serving cocktails, illuminated by nothing but candles. When we opened the Ski Lodge, I kept turning the lights down. If I had my way, the fireplace would be the only source of light in that place, and we’d be burning real logs. Okay, I admit it – as my eyesight deteriorates, I have to use the torch on my phone to read the menu. It’s annoying and it’s embarrassing. But reading the menu is only a brief moment of your restaurant experience, so why light the place like a library? These days, I usually tell the server to bring me whatever they think is best.
So when designing the venue for THE PARTY at Superfrico, which opens July 10th, I told our design team and our director, Lorenzo Pisoni, that I wanted candles. The new space we’re creating is called The Blue Room, but it will be filled with joyful art and comfortable seating—a snug, luxurious salon. This will be like dinner and entertainment in somebody’s family home. Sure, probably like no other home or family you’ve ever known. But nothing says special occasion, intrigue, or possibility like candlelight.
Ross Mollison
Impresario Extraordinaire, Spiegelworld