For more than 40 years, the Maredo name has stood for top-flight steaks from South America. To remain competitive in the current boom in burgers and steaks, the restaurant chain – the German market leader with some 50 steakhouse restaurants – undertook a conceptual restructuring in 2016. The Ippolito Fleitz Group, of Stuttgart, developed a modern room concept for the purpose; the concept was inaugurated in the Berlin restaurant, an eatery spanning nearly 580 square metres and located in ‘The Q’ at the historic Gendarmenmarkt. An integral part of the interior design are high-quality floor tiles made of porcelain stoneware; the tiles were designed and manufactured specially for Maredo by the Artefactur department at Villeroy & Boch Fliesen.

In creating the interior design, Ippolito Fleitz focussed on the visual and tactile translation of the core competencies of Maredo: the quality and origins of meat as raw material. The standard of quality permeates the entire interior – from the generously-proportioned grill area near the entrance to the modern salad bar, and from the open hearth in the rear dining room to the restroom facilities designed with trough-shaped washbasins and red partitions. The design theme of ‘origins’ is inspired by the South American cattle herders, the Gauchos. Their world is referenced in natural finishes in wood or leather, tree trunks, ropes and the typical iron grill. The diamond and zigzag shapes of the elements that characterise the space derive from the geometric weave patterns of traditional ponchos. Whether as wall tapestry, in counter cladding or in the open wood coffered ceiling, these elements provide the corporate architecture with high recognition value.

A particular eye-catcher are the floor tiles, specially designed by Villeroy & Boch Fliesen for Maredo, that effectively translate the poncho pattern onto porcelain stoneware: The experts at the Artefactur department, who specialise in exquisite ceramic designs for individual interior ideas, developed an exclusive design in two variations and realised this using innovative digital printing technology. The bicolor tiles combine dark Anthracite and delicate Light Grey to create a graphic pattern with an expressive impact over the area of the floor. The 20 x 20-cm tiles of glazed porcelain stoneware are equipped with R9 slip resistance and thus ideally suited for use in the commercial sector. As a material, porcelain stoneware offers other benefits as well: It is extremely robust, hard, break- and scratch-resistant and features great deep scuff resistance. The tiles are also colour- and lightfast and do not undergo any change in appearance, even in direct sunlight. Because porcelain stoneware is also resistant to acids, any spilled salad dressing or dips cannot harm it. Finally porcelain stoneware is appealing for its ease of cleaning and maintenance, and particularly in the restaurant business, this is an important argument in terms of economy.