In Los Angeles’s Highland Park, chef Miles Okabayashi ferments dough for 48 hours before baking it in a wood-fired oven. In conceiving of his shop serving Neopolitan-style pizza, Wildcrust, Okabayashi rejected the upper echelon trappings of New York’s fine dining scene. But, conversely, he also rejected the unelevated interiors of an every day pizza joint. It was up to designer Jared Frank to find a middle ground. For the compact space, he looked to Piero Portaluppi and Aldo Rossi.

Frank clads the space in rich patterns and materials in a postmodern fashion. A triangular trim, a chic nod to the shape of the food, lines the walls. Red and black tiling covers the counter backsplash. Tiered red pendants, designed by Ménard Dworkind with Lambert & Fils, and custom ziggurat sconces add panache. These decorative forms and textured surfaces elevate the space.

The color palette takes from the ingredients of pizza without being overly on the nose: the mint green that makes up the cabinet fronts stems from basil, the red banquettes and triangular base for the communal table craft are an ode to marinara sauce, and the aluminum detailing references the pizza pans.

Frank transports Wildcrust to Milan and its modernism to sculpt a chic home for Okabayashi’s pizza without drenching the parlor in ornament. The eatery is, as Frank put it, “a space where folks feel sexy eating with their hands.”