Marble is an open flame restaurant and butchery located on the Ithraa campus in Dhahran in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia. Originally based off a food truck in Riyadh, Marble has gained a reputation for prime cuts of meat, a passion for grilling, and a mastery of smoking techniques. Over the past few years, the partners behind these delectable patties have been trailblazing across Saudi Arabia to spread their passion for meat.
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The Dhahran branch is the restaurant’s first permanent establishment outside the capital, Riyadh. It is perched on an elevated platform alongside a cluster of restaurants and outdoor seating areas overlooking the iconic Snohetta building. The design approach was conceived around the aesthetics of meat storage and the butchering process to allow diners to wholistically appreciate the implications of meat consumption. Glossy white epoxy floors, vinyl curtains, and stainless-steel surfaces mimic the atmosphere of a meat storage unit. The centerpiece of the interior is a bespoke meat cold room that showcases the restaurant’s variety of dry aged meats along with the butcher’s table and equipment. An open grill station echoes the central refrigerator as a secondary anchor in the otherwise unobstructed space.
The general approach to the interiors is minimal with a focus on joinery, detailing, and material palette. The sterile environment of a meat refrigerator is achieved by employing large stainless-steel panels on the walls, table tops, chairs, and doorways. Furthermore, insulating vinyl sheet curtains filter sunlight while highlighting the industrial atmosphere of the interior. Stainless-steel pipes are curved and joined to create structural support brackets, railings, and light fixtures.
Sitting between the refrigerator and the grill, the diner is invited to experience the different stages of meat preparation. By exposing the butcher’s table, the process of meat procurement, storage and handling are laid bare in front of the diner. In doing so, the restaurant provides its visitors with an increasingly rare opportunity to witness meat processing in bid to elevate the value attached with its consumption.
