LIAOLIAO Café is a semi-sunken café and light dining pavilion located in Xiyuan Park, an urban forest in the historic city of Luoyang, China. Designed as an “architecture that disappears,” the project avoids traditional building typologies in favor of a low-intervention spatial strategy that weaves gently into its ecological and cultural setting.

Instead of presenting a bold architectural object, the design favors immersion: a radial layout coils around existing trees and terrain, organizing four distinct zones—café, tea, dining, and bar—into a continuous, looped circulation. There are no rigid walls or linear corridors. Spaces flow intuitively like a walk through a shaded grove. The result is a structure that feels soft, atmospheric, and deeply connected to the site.

The architecture is both technically and spatially minimal. Modular steel frames were prefabricated offsite to reduce construction time and site disturbance. Materials were locally sourced and kept natural—stone for mass and durability, bamboo and rattan for partitions and furniture, low-E glass for performance and transparency. No synthetic cladding, artificial ceilings, or chemical finishes were used. This not only lowers the project’s carbon footprint, but allows the building to breathe, adapt, and eventually be disassembled or repurposed.

Functionally, LIAOLIAO serves multiple roles: a café, a civic anchor, and a public living room. Its semi-outdoor spaces accommodate spontaneous community events—tea ceremonies, pop-up markets, or simply a quiet conversation under the trees. It attracts both locals and tourists, bridging the everyday with the exceptional.

Culturally, the project supports Luoyang’s evolving identity as a destination for thoughtful tourism and civic revival. Economically, it activates underused green space and draws new foot traffic to local vendors and small businesses.

Environmentally, the design follows a low-energy logic. Natural ventilation, daylighting, and passive shading reduce operational demand. The building’s small footprint activates a much larger zone—1,500 sqm of usable parkland—proving that meaningful architecture doesn’t need to be big, expensive, or loud. It just needs to be generous.