CENTER TABLE AT UW NORTH CAMPUS

Location:  Seattle, Washington
Type:   Institutional
Sustainability: Pursuing LEED (Phase IVa)

As part of an ambitious plan to rebuild their student life infrastructure, the University of Washington has engaged in a series of projects to replace nearly their entire stock of residence halls on the campus.  Phase 4a of the overall scheme is the first on North Campus. The three-building project includes several new campus amenities, the largest of which is a new central dining facility named Center Table.

Graham Baba provided interior design, furniture selection and architecture services for Center Table in collaboration with shell & core architect KieranTimberlake. In designing dining, open food preparation, and crafted recreational spaces, the team sought to create a meaningful central destination that supports the new residence halls and campus-wide student life. The Center Table dining facility has become a north campus hub that allows for the connection of students through a true merging of living, learning, and recreation.

Six individually branded food “platforms” provide students with a full range of menu options and dining experiences that are interspersed within a variety of social and seating areas. The goal was to create an environment that sustains the student body both dietarily and socially by creating a hub that allows for a mixture of social interaction. The dining facility is nestled within newly curated outdoor spaces with a backdrop of old growth groves that give the North Campus its distinct feel and help to connect the students to each other and the campus at large.

Photography: Matthew Millman
Shell & Core Architect: KieranTimberlake