ChicagoInno recently hosted an Office Hang challenge to find the best office spaces to enjoy an after-work beverage and conversation with colleagues and featured our client, Amata Office Centers. JDJ Architects designed the first Cognac Room and several subsequent Cognac Rooms for Amata Office Centers. It proved to be a popular space because of its elegant yet convivial feel, and has since been duplicated at all six Chicago area locations.

While the look and feel of all of the Cognac Rooms are basically the same, the color palettes vary depending on the Amata Center location's tenants. Amata's 150 N. Michigan Ave. location in Chicago, for example, appeals to its marketing company clients, so the colors are vibrant and energizing; the Cognac Room at the Amata Center in Naperville, which has an understated, neutral palette, was designed for that location's mostly financial and banking clients.

"The mission, for JDJ Architects, was to create a signature space so that Amata's shared-space tenants can relax and unwind with colleagues after a long day, or host a more casual client meeting or get-together," says Jim Jordan, principal at JDJ Architects. "The Cognac Room, while still modern, has a more classic look and offers a slight reprieve from the contemporary colors and styling of the other common areas."