LuLu Petite
San Fransico
CCS Architecture

Food boutique stands out in crowded Ferry Building

© Cesar Rubio

For more photos click on 'photos & drawings' above. To see the people and products behind this project click on 'people & products.'

The recent renovation of the historic Ferry Building in San Francisco created space for a variety of markets, restaurants, and general retailers. Many of the shops are located in the building’s long, central nave-like hall. One of them is LuLu Petite, a “fast-casual” boutique for Restaurant Lulu that showcases LuLu’s gourmet food products as well as prepared salads, sandwiches, and beverages for customers to take away or eat at an in-store counter.

The architect worked with the client to create an architectural look and feel that would express the heritage of LuLu and yet be bold and focused as a retail concept. They hit upon doing the store entirely in the color yellow—using yellow Finland Color Plywood FINPLY for almost every finish, accented by swashes of brown and stainless steel. To help display LuLu’s 51 different products, the architect devised vertical shelving columns that are capped by the individual products. The architect also designed a menu display comprised of FINPLY panels with clips that allow LuLu’s chefs to post and change the menu daily.

The entire shop measures just 350 square feet, so the architect was challenged to maximize the use of every square inch of space. During the day, shelving units are rolled out of the shop into the Ferry Building’s main hall; at night, these units are rolled back inside and a five-seat dining counter folds flush with the store’s security door. To help the boutique stand out among a crowd of similar small shops located in the Ferry Building, the architect worked with designer Michael Mabry to create the graphics and signage.

Formal name of Project:
LuLu Petite

Location:
San Fransico

Gross square footage:
300 sq. ft.

Total construction cost:
$200,000

Owner:
Rowena Wu

Architect:
CCS Architecture
44 McLea Court
San Francisco, CA 94103
t.415.864.2800
f.415.864.2850
info@ccs-architecture.com
www.ccs-architecture.com