The Corner Restaurant
The building is located at the corner of a busy intersection where office towers and lower residential units meet. The small scale of the volume compared to the surrounding buildings invited to create a design simple and in the same time conspicuous. The building just kept the structural elements of the previous construction and its now hosting a bar and restaurant.
The regular volume of the building alternates solid and semi-transparent surfaces aligned with the neighbour delimitation. Only a dark steel box protrudes out to sign the entrance. With a mirrored approach, internally the functions and circulation are arranged around a play of solid boxes and carved out spaces.
Photography by © Jonathan Leijonhufvud
The façade design controls the privacy of the interior space by alternating wood louvres with solid white stone while the steel box of the entrance hides a secret Japanese garden that trespass the slab on the second floor.
On the ground floor, the space is arranged around three main material volumes: the steel box of the entrance and the Japanese garden, a white terrazzo box that hosts the restroom and the access to the service area and finally a wood cube that separates the whiskey bar from the reception area. The boxes are detached from the ceiling which is the bare concrete slab of the second floor. The soft seating area enjoy the privacy provide by the louver façade but it still has a view on the streetscape. A small garden in between the louver and the glass façade enrich the corner of the lounge while increasing physical distance to the busy street.
Photography by © Jonathan Leijonhufvud
The bar is placed inside a wooden box to increase the privacy one level more. Comfortable seats and a low counter convey a relaxed environment.
The second floor instead follow the spatial organization of two concentric cubes: an inner core in wood which host the kitchen and the dining rooms of the Sushi Restaurant and an outer volume in white stone as the façade that distributes the circulation of the costumers to reach the sushi bar and the VIP room.
Another Japanese garden is an unexpected treat for the guest of the Sushi Bar. From inside, the view enjoys the beauty of the garden as well as the busy cityscape filtered by the wood louver of the façade.
Photography by © Jonathan Leijonhufvud
Project Info:
Architects: MDDM STUDIO
Location: Beijing, China
Area: 100 m²
Project Year: 2020
Photographs: Jonathan Leijonhufvud
