Heritage Renovation · Darlington, Perth HillsThe Gilks Bakery
Wine Bar.

Project overview

Celebrating history
for new generations.

The Gilks Bakery Wine Bar is a careful renovation and addition to one of Darlington's significant heritage buildings: the old Darlington Bakery, reputed to have operated until 1947 and listed on the Shire of Mundaring Municipal Heritage Inventory. The project is as much about community as it is about building.

Rather than erasing the building's history, the design adds a new layer to it, celebrating the original fabric while creating a place for new generations to gather, eat and connect. The result is a small wine bar and dining venue that fits the grain and character of Darlington Village.

The design

Old and new
in careful dialogue.

Remember, renew and preserve: the best way to secure a heritage place's role in the community is to use it.

The original verandah columns, bracing and beams of the old bakery are kept as the hero of the space. The verandah still welcomes people in and gives them somewhere to gather, a nod to its original purpose. New V-shaped columns mark the addition clearly without competing with the heritage fabric.

Two large fixed entry windows carry a print of the old Darlington map, tracing the bakery's place along the old railway route. An entry courtyard with a green wall softens the setting and absorbs noise, and an entry airlock keeps sound from the venue away from the neighbours.

"The best way to preserve a heritage place is to give it a living purpose: use it, celebrate it and share it with new generations."

Acoustic and traffic engineers, a waste management consultant, a bushfire specialist and an on-site wastewater consultant were all brought in early, to make sure the venue would sit comfortably with its neighbours and the wider Darlington community.

The venue faces the car park rather than the homes to the north, and activity is focused inside, keeping noise where it belongs.