The Secret Room in Dubai: a speakeasy in which si-fi and Dalì met

When in Dubai you can’t expect to find ordinary experience since everything there is made dramatic. Is this the city that hosts spectacular hospitality projects, the world’s biggest mall and here an artificial island has been built and it is visible even from the space.

It is not a surprise that in Dubai a simple concept like the one of a speakeasy is overturned: no longer a small cozy affair but an unapologetically theatrical set-piece. Paolo Ferrari, the Toronto-based studio that stands behind this project used different visual references, ranging from Rome’s Villa Farnese to the final bedroom scene of A Space Odyssey.

The Secret Room is decored with clear cast resin tables, 1960s furnishings, and smoked oak panels. A bronze-hued fibreglass bar, whose sinuous curves recall both Dali and Zaha Hadid, is the central element in this location. Glass floors and mirrored walls can be found in the bathrooms and the hidden doors in the main room open for VIPs, to literally drive them into the speakeasy directly from the carpark.