Caltech Athenaeum

Located in a landmark structure designed by Gordon B. Kaufmann, the Athenaeum club at the California Institute of Technology has been providing its 4,000 members with a high-quality social and dining experience since 1930. Although the historic Mediterranean Style-inspired building and its surrounding gardens are sought after for all sorts of events-including the wildly popular summertime Rath Al Fresco outdoor cooking and dining experience- in recent years the Athenaeum’s existing food preparation facilities had become inadequate in size, functionality, and atmosphere for current visitor volume.
To improve kitchen and food service for the Rath Al Fresco, as well as address required operational changes in compliance with the City of Pasadena Health Department’s regulations for outdoor cooking and dining, FF&P was commissioned to design an addition to the existing Athenaeum kitchen. Our 1,900 square foot expansion was carefully considered in deference to the historic building and the design guidelines of Caltech’s legacy campus, but adds a new sense of “sizzle.” The project was also thoughtfully phased to ensure operations remained open during construction.
FF&P’s design for the addition is a discrete garden pavilion that extends from the existing Athenaeum kitchen wing. Not only does it meet historic preservation guidelines, it also achieves a sense of appropriateness in both form and material. The simple plaster and glass structure draws inspiration from Caltech’s historic architecture—the “X” patterning on the façade recalls ornamental detail found in many campus buildings—but offers a contemporary architectural counterpoint. Large areas of transparency in the façade showcase the bustle of activity in the kitchen, servery, and bar areas, as well as visually connecting the pavilion to the surrounding landscape.
In addition to respecting the Athenaeum’s existing architectural features, our design focused on improving circulation for the Athenaeum’s patrons and staff, a driving factor in determining the addition’s arrangement and placement. Consolidating the club’s kitchen facilities within the addition also enhanced the existing building’s natural surroundings. A new exterior terrace accommodates informal, seasonal outdoor dining and socializing under a canopy of the mature trees that are so integral to Caltech’s campus.