This restaurant, which is tucked away in twin bungalows in a mixed-use development region of Hanoi, Vietnam, and overlooks the magnificent West Lake, stands out to onlookers on the busy and moving lakeside road. It was necessary to transform the quiet façade of the twin houses into something that would draw attention away from the west lake while also giving the nondescript skyline some individuality.
Location: Hanoi, Vietnam
Completion Year: 2019
Gross Built Area: 1970 SQ. FT.
Lead Architect: Ar. Deepak Guggari
Photo credits: Mr. Hiroyuki Oki
Design Team: Ar. Rashi Sanson
The 30 feet high façade is made of golden metal wire that has been shaped into designs resembling Indian motifs. These screens cover the restaurant’s outside space, providing views of the West lake while preserving the complex’s seclusion. They most strikingly resemble the decorations on an Indian saree.
This filigree façade, which was woven by regional artisans in the rural communities of north India, not only gives the room a “Indian” feel but also adds a touch of glitz to the otherwise sombre surroundings. The scenery that peeks through these golden panels balances the atmosphere. The grey natural stone flooring forms intriguing patterns in the daytime when sunlight filters through the screens, but at night, when lights are shone onto it, the screen shimmers. The users have a distinct experience depending on the time of day.
The exterior is a mix of IPS and grey stone flooring, broken up by aggregate beds, while the interiors offer delicate plain IPS walls and terrazzo flooring in black and white patterns. Rustic cast-in-place benches and woven rope chord chairs are used for outdoor seating to complete the idea. The inside seating is comprised of plush velvet sofas, vibrant leather-upholstered chairs, and braided wooden benches. Paintings of Indian maharajas and rusted wooden mirror frames in various shapes adorn the walls. Brass shelves surround the bar counter, which has a wooden cast dye block face. Chandeliers made of brass wire and frosted glass give the space a shiny appearance. All of
the art, artefacts, and furniture were made in India and then transported there in containers. We made an attempt to match the ambiance and interiors to the Indian ethos, with the name “Rasm” symbolising Indian culture and traditions, with gastronomy being the most significant component.
CLIENT STORY
The name “Rasm” means culture and traditions, and In Indian culture, gastronomy is the most important element. This restaurant serving Indian cuisine in the distant land of Vietnam required us to impart an “Indian-ness” to the space in which it was relished. Our effort was to match the ambience and interiors to the Indian ethos. Our clients were relatively new in this field of food-serving and had no firsthand experience. They wanted a limited budget to be spent on their first venture and yet a space where foreigners could relate to our love for food and craft.
CONTEXT
Our site was a set of twin-bungalows in a mixed use neighborhood area overlooking the beautiful West lake. These bungalows had a modest façade easily lost in the neighboring skyline. And the effort was to convert this into something which would catch the vision of the passers-by on the busy and moving lakefront road. While we couldn’t do much alteration to the existing bungalows since they were leased out, we pondered over ways to define a language for us. And we stuck upon the idea of creating a porous façade demarcating the outdoor area of the restaurant, which facilitates the views of the west lake.
CONCEPT & INSPIRATION
Now we had many ideas for this porous façade but we zeroed in on the idea of the golden zari work on the saree. Hence the golden metal wire, molded into the patterns, reminiscent of the Indian motifs, forms the 30 feet high façade. The “Golden Veil” as we call it is a representation of the saree with the golden motifs.
PLANNING
Vietnam having 12 months of tourist season the restaurants don’t go dry. Out of all when some one goes out for dining they prefer outdoor seating, Especially when they have a beautiful sight of the lake. With this in mind the outdoor foreground gets importance in our planning. The indoors are for dining and lounging during extreme climates with controlled temperatures. renovating the old bungalows was not a task and the absence of set-backs in hanoi made the planning quite straight forward. Removing walls and physically combining the areas was achieved with ease. The original plans and site context by default put the kitchen in backside which had 5’ setback which further was included in kitchen. The remaining areas became the space for main dining and lounging. Second floor was kept for logistics, back-office and staff stay. Staircase of each bungalow allowed us to segregate customer and service access to upper floors. Maximum seating was planned for outdoor where the maximum footfall is anticipated.
LOCAL CRAFT PROMOTION
Woven by the local craftsmen in the villages of north India, the filigree façade not only imparts an “Indian” character to the space but also brings in a dash of glamour in the otherwise subdued surroundings. The hand-woven filigree screens support and uplift the work of the local kaarigars (artisans). It promotes the Indian handicraft which is becoming obsolete in recent times.
MAKING OF GOLDEN VEIL
A fabrication framework was erected on site. Metal chains were suspended from it. We chose a few patterns for the filigree façade and formed small panels of those. These panels were hooked on the suspended metal chains in order to distribute the load & stress. The space provides a different ambience day and night. While during the day, the sunbeams filtering through the screens, form interesting patterns on the grey natural stone flooring, the screen shimmers at night by means of the lights directed at it.
MATERIAL PALETTE
While the interiors boast of subtle plain IPS walls and terrazzo flooring in black and white patterns, the outdoor is a mix of Vacuum-dewatered floors and grey stone flooring, broken by aggregate beds. The outdoor seating comprises very rustic cast in-situ benches and woven rope chord chairs, completing the theme. Plush velvet sofas, colourful leather upholstered chairs and woven wooden benches form the indoor seating. Various elements of the interiors such as the doors, railings, wall panelling etc. have been picked up from the local bazaars of Rajasthan and restored on-site.
The discarded textile printing blocks form the face of the bar counter. Walls are adorned with paintings of Indian maharajas (Kings) and worn-out wooden mirror frames in assorted shapes. The furniture, artefacts and artwork were all sourced from India. The main restaurant door was a salvaged door sourced from India.
