At first glance, the interior of Hueso in Guadalajara, Mexico, which opened in 2014, looks like it’s made completely of white porcelain. But it’s not.
It’s animal bones.
Appropriately named — Hueso is Spanish for bone — the restaurant interior is entirely whitewashed and the walls are decorated from floor to ceiling with 10,000 animal bones, from common cow, bull and lamb skulls, to more exotic skeletons of whales, dolphins, tigers, and bears. The effect is an eerie mix between a science laboratory and a museum of curiosities.
But the reasoning behind chef Alfonso Cadena’s unusual dining room décor is not as sinister or gimmicky as you might think.
“For us, hueso (bones) means flavor!” chef Cadena said about his unusual interior design choice.
The bone-filled dining room at Hueso has won Interior Design’s 2015 Best of Casual Dining award and the Commercial Interior Design Association Best Interiors of Latin America and the Caribbean competition, among other design prizes.
Not surprisingly, the food served at the 4,844-square-foot restaurant does not shy away from meat. The shareable plates change daily, but options have included short ribs, bone marrow with scallops, and veal tongue for an average check of 850 pesos (or $44) per person.
