A relaxed, riverside dining experience.

Interior Design

The Boathouse Cafe sits within The Boathouse - a new building in Guildford, on the bank of the river Wey. The cafe-restaurant overlooks the water, and offers seasonal breakfast, lunch and dinner menus in an idyllic setting.

Raw Clay were tasked with creating a brand identity and interior scheme that would reference the heritage of the site, which has been home to a boat hire business since the Victorian era.

We were responsible for the identity, packaging, and interior design.

“We came to Raw Clay with a feeling we wanted to create. We described our dream to them, and they somehow made it a tangible reality that could be felt by others.”

Jessica Meins, The Boathouse

A palette of natural materials including stone, wood, linen, and clay is used repeatedly throughout the space, chosen to reflect the materials found in and around the river. On the largest wall, layers of clay render create a relief design, traced from a map of the river Wey. A huge floral installation hanging overhead feels like rushes and plantlife lifted directly from the riverbed.