The Arts Club Dubai Champagne Trolley
With an emphasis on British craftsmanship and design, this stunning polished brass champagne trolley was the created for an overseas client looking for an authentically British drinks trolley from which to serve the perfectly chilled glass of champagne to their discerning clientele.
Established in 1863 in London, and launched in 2011 in the Emirate of Dubai, The Arts Club Dubai features a number of luxury dining experiences for its members, from a renowned brasserie and two brand new restaurants to a beautiful private dining room, extensive outdoor terraces and a spectacular array of members’ lounges to escape to. Housing a permanent contemporary art collection, and changing exhibitions, the interior design was created by a Milan-based studio.
Andrew Nebbett Designs is no stranger to designing bespoke and beautifully-crafted drinks trolleys for luxurious destinations and so we were only too pleased when our clients reached out to us with a brief for their own bespoke trolley.
Working with Tonique Collective alongside The Art Club, Dubai, collaboration was very much the name of the game, with a great deal of early discussion about the specifics; the functionality, the design and the finish.
Mood boards were created as part of the lengthy design process that enabled our client team to fully visualise their project to the fullest. This very in-depth and involved journey led to the development of a fully-bespoke champagne trolley based on our original solid polished brass drinks trolley, incorporating a double-skinned champagne ice bowl.
Essential to the design was the location of the champagne flutes to be used (and housed) underneath the glass shelf, as well as how the serving staff would reach them, as modestly as possible. We also had to give great consideration to minimising the noise and ‘glass chatter’ as the trolley was rolled smoothly across the floor.
Samples of the flutes were sent to us from the manufacturers and our highly-skilled team set about the research and design phase, testing heights of the shelves using ‘models’ of varying heights, aiming to capture the right distance for reaching to retrieve a flute, whilst not actually bending forwards.
At each stage of production, care and attention was applied to ensure every part of the brief would be fulfilled. For example, the cradle that would hold the ice bowl couldn’t be fitted until the glass shelf was installed so that the hole in the top would be an exact fit for the bowl without either component touching the other – so millimetre accuracy was crucial!
(Please click on the gallery images below…)
There was also the challenge presented by a moving trolley of the potential for rattling glasses to contend with. Here, our team cleverly created a bespoke shelf from black speckled composite material and spent a lot of time devising the optimum location and distance (from one another) and the quantity of flutes that could be accommodated. Client collaboration was key and we liaised many times to discuss the various possible outcomes. In the end, we all settled on 10 flutes; 5 on each side of the trolley, with the composite shelf shaped to house each glass and each glass resting on small silicone pads that would minimise any movement noise.
The result was an exquisite polished brass and glass champagne trolley with a stainless steel double-skinned ice bowl and speckled black, hand cut composite shelf to carefully house the champagne flutes beneath. The finishing touches were the polished brass hoods that elegantly housed the castor wheels inside.
We are incredibly are proud to be able to say that our work is all made in the United Kingdom! In fact, more specifically, all our materials, components and work is sourced and carried out in Great Britain… in the green and rolling hills of Devon!
As well as being expert craftsmen, our team are also masters of patination techniques! If you would prefer a drinks trolley which doesn’t look shiny and new, but rather appears to be more mature as if it’s seen an amazing party or two, then you’ve come to the right place… we are specialists in producing antiqued surface finishes to materials such as brass, copper, steel and many more!
Characterful and aged may be right for one person, but modern, perfectly finished and sleek may be a better fit for another. Polished chrome or nickel finishes are stunning in equal measure, and we regularly work with clients to achieve such a finish. These finishes are achieved by plating the surface of the base material, which is remarkably durable if treated correctly. For more information, please contact our team.
Our highly skilled team of craftsmen can apply their production expertise to any style, from period and vintage designs through to contemporary and minimal styles and materials. Just start the conversation with our design team and you’ll be surprised what you might find!
Or perhaps a wooden drinks trolley… or even a combination of metal and wood? No matter the desired construction, our team of craftsmen are highly skilled in both metalwork, cabinetry and much in-between… just take a look at our range of bespoke commissions to see the extent of our work!
