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Espresso Alchemy Harbour City

Metagram

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Arches border a designated open space within the mall to provide shelter and privacy to patrons and to strongly define the café space within the otherwise bland area. Parallel arches are linked by subtle lines of red elastic forming a semi-solid ceiling of repeating barrel vaults. - Metagram
A single edge lit barrel vault illuminates the café tenancy space; it's simple form creates a single point of reference to bring order to the slender and irregularly shaped space. The tenancy is shallow, so a line of red textured glass slats provide a layer of privacy and increases the visibility of the shopfront when viewed at an angle.  A single communal table ensures a clean appearance within the elegant space. - Metagram
A large circular structural column occupied a corner of the external seating area. Metagram increased the mass of this element and squared it off to both mimic the geometry of the arches and to provide a strong 'backdrop' which oriented the space back toward the main tenancy space. Plastered in a rich coat of venetian plaster this 'backdrop' provided a wonderful opportunity to create an intimate seating nook for two. - Metagram
Arches border a designated open space within the mall to provide shelter and privacy to patrons and to strongly define the café space within the otherwise bland area. Parallel arches are linked by subtle lines of red elastic forming a semi-solid ceiling of repeating barrel vaults. - Metagram

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Comments
Innovation
Functionality
Creativity
Eco-Social Impact
Total
JURY VOTES
Restaurant
5.75
6.67
6.08
4.67
5.79
Budiman Ong
Budiman Ong Creative Director at Ong Cen Kuang
6.5
7
6.5
6.5
6.63
Lewis Lu
Lewis Lu Head of Planning & Design Department at Shenzhen Qianhai and Shekou Free Trade Zone Investment Development
6.5
8
7
7
7.13
Valeria Tsikhinia
Valeria Tsikhinia Design Manager- Interior Design | Design & Development at Al Futtaim Real Estate
6
6.5
6
6
6.13
Peng Cai
Peng Cai Founder and Principal Architect at Infinite
6.5
8
7
7
7.13
Alvaro Paredes Palacios
Alvaro Paredes Palacios Principal and Partner at The Designlab
6.5
7
7
7
6.88
Shelley Baxter
Shelley Baxter Design Director New York at March and White
6.5
7
6.5
7
6.75
Arjun Malik
Arjun Malik Principal Architect at Malik Architecture
6.5
7
6.5
7
6.75
Julião Leite
Julião Leite Partner at OODA
6.5
7.5
6
6.5
6.63
Blair Cooper
Blair Cooper Creative Director at Seen Studios
7
7.5
7
6
6.88
Designer
Client
Espresso Alchemy
Floor area
90 ㎡
Completion
2020
Principal Designer
John Chow

The objective of the Espresso Alchemy café design in Hong Kong's Harbour City mall was to visually connect two disjointed but adjacent spaces. Metagram inserted vividly coloured architectural forms in order to create this iconic design. The site located in Tsim Sha Tsui, a key tourist district of Hong Kong, was one without clear boundaries and was surrounded by much visual clutter, making it difficult to control the design experience. Comprised of two sections, the primary tenancy was narrow, oddly shaped, and visually open to a vast, mostly inactive common mall area providing good visibility but little privacy. Adjacent to the tenancy, within the open mall space was the secondary area. This area was drenched in cool, 4500K lighting and was very exposed, particularly to an underpass traffic route – these latent conditions were unsuitable for an F&B establishment. The secondary space posed the most significant challenge, in that it would contain most of the café seating and the existing finishes could not be changed. Metagram’s design set out to solve two key issues. It would unify the two spaces although detached and surrounded by visual noise, and it would create enclosure and refuge in order to provide suitable atmosphere for a successful café. At the core of the design, Metagram used the architectural element of the ‘arch’ (in a deep red painted timber veneer) to highlight the brand’s colour, contrast with site surroundings, and simultaneously to synchronise the design to the rhythm set by the existing façade glazing. The arches in the secondary space, linked by tightly stretched red elastic formed a subtle series of barrel arches. This ‘stoa’ like volume would be visually striking, standing out against its surroundings and providing the much-needed refuge for café patrons. The floor finish - a contemporary terrazzo printed LVT, and the furniture, a combination of veneer, terrazzo and rich green marble. In the corner of the secondary external area was a large column which Metagram clad with a plywood structure finished in Venetian plaster. A two-seater built-in banquette formed the backdrop feature of the space. Rosco film was added to the existing 4500K lights to modify the mood to a more comfortable 3000K. Within the primary tenancy space, a central, edge lit barrel vault provided its main feature. It defined an axis, providing order to the irregular space, and referenced the string barrel vaults used externally. The vault added an uplifting atmosphere to the space and a single communal table, created an elevated dining experience. In order to add privacy, Metagram added a layer of red textured glass fins to the shopfront. It would be relatively transparent in elevation, but bold red and translucent at a sheer. Making use of the freedom to define the surfaces, the floors used rich black terrazzo, the bar bench - acid washed black granite, and the walls were richly articulated in taupe mosaics. Finally, at the end of the space, a red arch could also be found, marrying the design of the external and internal spaces.