Sunday’s Pasta Lab

A Bright Break, Served Subterranean, Toronto

Sunday’s Pasta Lab at First Canadian Place

Sunday’s Pasta Lab continues its growth with the opening of a new location in the Market Place food court at First Canadian Place, positioned in the core of Toronto’s financial district. Designed as a go-to lunch destination for downtown professionals, the space needed to respond to the fast-paced rhythm of the PATH while delivering the same fresh, handmade pasta experience the brand is known for.

Designed by Sansa Interiors Inc., the interior is streamlined, energetic, and optimized for high-volume quick service without losing the warmth and personality of the Sunday’s Pasta Lab identity. Every design decision was made to support speed, clarity, and efficiency, while ensuring the space remains welcoming, polished, and unmistakably rooted in the brand’s creative spirit.

City: Toronto

Property Size: 900 sf

Timeline: 9 Months

Budget: $500K

Pasta bags on a mobile cart with pops of yellow and walnut wood

Design Narrative

The design for the First Canadian Place location was developed in tandem with the Liberty Village location, allowing for a cohesive brand narrative across both spaces and their home base at STACKT. Because the brand story was approached holistically from the outset, this location naturally carries forward the same process-driven and experimental spirit that defines Sunday’s Pasta Lab.

While each location responds to its own context and operational needs, the underlying concept remains shared. Sunday’s Pasta Lab’s design is rooted in the brand’s process-driven approach to pasta making: a step-by-step, customizable, and interactive experience. What sets Sunday’s Pasta Lab apart is its unique cultural foundation. Unlike many pasta-focused restaurants that naturally lean into a traditional Italian aesthetic, this brand draws inspiration from its Greek heritage. Every material, color, and detail was chosen thoughtfully to honor this identity and create an environment that feels both fresh and true to the brand’s story.

Industrial style service counter with yellow pasta shaped pendants above

The Concept

Our concept took inspiration from the precision and structure of a laboratory, but we wanted to reinterpret that aesthetic with a warm, modern twist. The challenge was finding harmony between the cool, hard-edged qualities of a lab and the inviting charm of a restaurant. Too far in one direction, and the space would feel overly clinical; too far in the other, and it would lose the distinctive identity of a “lab.” Striking that balance became the driving force behind our design approach.

Unlike the industrial-craft aesthetic of our Liberty Village flagship, which leans into the raw, residential textures of its neighborhood, the FCP location required a more polished and high-velocity design language. In a world of windowless concrete and fluorescent transit, we created a luminous detour for the high-speed Financial District lunch rush. On paper, these elements might seem at odds, but through thoughtful composition and precise placement, the Sansa Interiors team was able to blend them seamlessly. The result is a space that feels fresh, dynamic, and unmistakably true to Sunday’s Pasta Lab.

Rendering to Reality

Industrial style pasta restaurant with pops of yellow and walnut wood

Designing for flow & Efficiency

Construction floor plan for pasta restaurant

Designing for the PATH is ultimately a study in the choreography of time. With a 900-square-foot footprint that balances intimate storefront with high-capacity production "lab," our spatial strategy focused on meticulous flow for frictionless transitions to fuel Sunday’s expansion across the city while maintaining the boutique soul of a neighborhood local. We utilized transparency as our primary design tool, an architectural choice that allows the constant motion of the kitchen to become part of the guest experience; the rhythmic preparation that makes the "lab" a living, breathing entity.

The interior flow was meticulously engineered to dissolve the friction of the midday rush, creating a clear, intuitive dialogue between the ordering counter and the pickup zone. This seamless circulation ensures a frictionless transition for the busy professional, moving them from the high-pressure environment of the office towers to the comfort of a warm meal without a moment of wasted motion. At the heart of this transition sits the "Pick Me Up" zone that acts as a vibrant beacon of energy within the compact storefront. This pop of yellow is a sensory signal designed to guide the customer through their lunch ritual, providing a bright, energized pause in the middle of the underground commute.

It’s all in the details

Pasta restaurant service counter with yellow pendant lighting

Yellow and walnut mobile cart with bags of pasta

Pasta noodle wall art on matte black wall

dry pasta noodles on counter with yellow mosaic tile

Stainless Steel commercial kitchen door with yellow tinted window

Overcoming Challenges

Industrial style pasta restaurant with yellow put on cooktop

Layout and workflow

While subterranean retail is typically defined by its limitations, the First Canadian Place location presented a unique challenge of scale. At roughly 900 square feet, the footprint is compact, with no room for wasted space. The challenge was balancing a high-output production “lab” with an intimate, boutique customer experience. Within such a tight footprint, managing the flow of a high-density lunch rush is critical to preventing bottlenecks. We meticulously engineered the floor plan to facilitate a frictionless transition from “The Lab” to the “Pick Me Up” zone. By treating the layout as a study in the choreography of time, we ensured that the busy professional can navigate the space with ease, proving that high-output industrial efficiency and artisanal soul can coexist in a singular, sophisticated environment.

Integrating existing systems

Building a high-output production "lab" deep within a 72-story corporate tower presents a labyrinth of technical and logistical complexities. Unlike a street-level build, the PATH demands intense compliance with stringent HVAC, plumbing, and electrical requirements, where every exposed element—even rear and side walls—is subject to landlord approval. This was compounded by the nocturnal nature of the construction process; operating within a busy office hub meant all loading, servicing, and high-impact labor were restricted to tightly scheduled, off-hours windows. Our team meticulously managed this subterranean choreography, balancing the high setup costs and specialized nocturnal labor to ensure that the complex mechanical infrastructure required for fresh pasta production was seamlessly integrated into a polished, luxury environment without a hint of industrial grit.

Designing an open kitchen

The kitchen was both a design priority and a central part of the client’s vision for the space. From the outset, they expressed a strong desire for customers to be able to see their meals being prepared, making the kitchen not just a functional zone but an extension of the front-of-house experience. This introduced an additional layer of complexity to the design process, as the kitchen needed to operate with the efficiency and durability of a traditional back-of-house environment, while also presenting a clean, organized, and visually appealing face to the public. Every detail from the layout of prep stations and cooking equipment to the finishes on walls and millwork, had to balance functionality with aesthetics. We worked closely with the client to understand their culinary workflow, ensuring that equipment placement supported speed and efficiency, while also planning for clear sightlines, minimized clutter, and intentional material selections that elevated the overall look. The result was a kitchen that blended seamlessly into the customer experience: highly efficient for staff, but also polished and engaging for guests, reinforcing the client’s vision of transparency and connection between the food, the process, and the people enjoying it.

Pasta restaurant with pops of yellow and walnut wood

The End Result

Designing Sunday’s Pasta Lab has been an incredibly rewarding experience. Working with a brand that is authentic, creative, and shares the same values as us made the collaboration feel natural and inspiring. From showcasing the pasta making process at the front of the space, creating efficient circulation that avoids bottlenecks, to designing a space that encourages creativity and exploration; every detail reflects both the client’s vision and our design philosophy. We’re thrilled to have brought their new location to life, and we’re even more excited to continue supporting Sunday’s Pasta Lab as they expand across Toronto and beyond.