Guy Fieri Dine- in Cinema

To develop the first Reel Cinema dine-in cinema experience in the region where pre-ordered food and drinks are served during the film. It is also the first licensed cinema in the Middle East. The design requires the auditorium and kitchen to be adjacent but to also be sealed off from each other in terms of noise, temperature and cooking odours. A joint venture between two leaders in their respective fields, the cinema and kitchen/bar area are both state of the art. We were brought in just two months before the client wanted to open.

• No templates or track experience existed in the region for this project. More than that, there were existing design clarifications and issues which needed closing — and many practical issues still had to be resolved. The location of lighting was a particular challenge, one that is crucial in a cinema of this kind which combines overall darkness with small pools of light for guests and waiters.
• Time pressure to complete the project in two months.
• Very precise state-of-the-art requirements on the kitchen design. Emmy Award-winning TV presenter and celebrity chef Guy Fieri helped configure the space himself, sending his own team from the US to check, prepare and organise the kitchen and bar area in the final weeks.

• Although we managed to complete in eight weeks, we were careful to manage the clients expectations on the time schedule. Not only was the project high-profile but it would been undermined from the first night if elements such as the lighting and the seal between the auditorium and the kitchen had not worked perfectly. It took two weeks to close out all the snags — all issues were resolved methodically by the JLL team.
• We addressed the lighting and other design issues through a programme of twice-daily site tours and workshops.
• We recognised at the outset that the kitchen would be more compact and complicated than in most restaurants. Celebrity chefs have precise requirements when operating in their normal environment — and these needs still had to be perfectly accommodated despite being located in an entertainment venue with a high through-put of visitors.  Signing tenants up early sets a precedent for future development in Dubai. Illustrating the results that come from forward planning, makes the region more attractive to global investors and tenants.