From Michelin Star-winning restaurants to Wildwood’s Morey’s Piers, Stokes Architecture + Design has been the unsung creative force behind dozens of the Philadelphia region’s most celebrated establishments for more than two decades.

Last month, Stokes was the only Philadelphia firm named to Forbes’ inaugural list of America’s Top Hospitality Architects and Designers, which includes 100 firms that are shaping the fine dining and luxury industries. To Lance Saunders, the design director for Stokes’ 12 employees, the recognition confirms that his firm’s emphasis on using design as a storytelling medium has paid off.

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In its 25 years of operation, Stokes has had a hand in designing Friday Saturday Sunday, Provenance, Kalaya, Bardea Steak and nearly all of Stephen Starr’s establishments in Philly, including The Dandelion and Talula’s Garden — just to name a few. At Morey’s Piers, Stokes helped design the amusement park’s signage and the arch over its entrance. 

Saunders said the approach Stokes takes with all of its projects is “theatrical” in nature, transforming the client’s vision into a visitor-friendly experience.  

“You’re thinking about how they’re interacting with the space — what they’re touching, what they’re seeing, what they’re feeling,” he said. “We’re kind of telling a story. But, at the same time we’re pretty collaborative with our clients.” 

The design of Starr’s newest Rittenhouse restaurant, Borromini, is a prime example. It was heavily inspired by traditional Roman trattorias but also brings out the historical features of the Alison building by incorporating vaulted ceilings and intricate murals to the windowless backside of the restaurant. 

“We wanted to give it some drama in that case … and to make that space feel a little bit special since it was lacking immediate connection to the park,” Saunders said. 

In 2023, Stokes was tapped to help refurbish Friday Saturday Sunday — one of three Philly restaurants to earn a Michelin star last month — and its Lovers Bar. Stokes used this as an opportunity to highlight the restaurant’s “colonial-meets-Hollywood-regency style” while also paying homage to the owners’ originality by upgrading the interior design, lighting and fluidity of the restaurant’s layout.

“What I wanted to do was to kind of get in the mind of a diner there and figure out how to make that space a little bit more harmonious,” Saunders said. “The whole idea there was how they do this elevated take on French dining with all of (co-owner Chad Williams’) influence there. I just wanted to make this beautiful French-inspired salon-style dining room.” 

Forbes compiled its final list by evaluating portfolios submitted by hundreds of finalists on metrics like artistry and craft, materials selection and siting — how the location of a building is incorporated into the design. For its submission, Stokes submitted photos of its work on the swanky Rittenhouse restaurant and coffee-cocktail bar, Enswell, at 1528 Spruce St.

“I think when you look at our work and you think about Philadelphia’s dining scene, our name is attached to a lot of these restaurants,” Saunders said. “We have a variety of work, it’s not just brasseries. We’ve done cafes, hotels, office buildings … I think our portfolio is interesting in a way that makes us really unique.”  

With the country’s 250th anniversary to place Philadelphia in the spotlight next year, Saunders said he hopes the city’s scrappy sense of creativity can continue to be recognized nationally. Stokes currently is working with the owners of Banshee, a new bistro opening in the former Tio Flores at 1600 South St. The restaurant does not yet have an opening date.  

“There’s so many cool things coming up (in Philadelphia) that are very bootstrapped,” he said. “That’s bred this elevated sense of creativity in Philadelphia for all of these years. Now, with the Michelin stars here, it’s a whole new step up.”