Tewa Café is an extension of traditional restaurant ‘Pae Thewaraj’, that has been operating for more than 40 years. The owners’ grandchildren now manage the business and they decided to expand the market by building a café that serves Italian food and beverages alongside the traditional restaurant.
The design of Tewa Café aims to connect the two buildings by using carp fish as theme, which becomes an icon of the restaurant and signifies the buildings’ proximity with the nearby river. The fences use grey bricks arranged in a way that imitates carp scales. This brick line also connects the outdoor and the interior. The part that flows into the building serves as planters; and at the back, the brick line connects the café area with the original context of the restaurant.
The front entrance features a ‘hidden’ wheelchair that has been seamlessly integrated into the design. The façade walls consist of glass panels at the bottom and opaque walls at the seating level upwards. This is to restrict viewing from outside so that customers can enjoy their meals with a sense of privacy, while opening up the space for natural lighting at the same time.
The stairs to the second floor are placed outdoor not only to ease circulation for logistics but also to invite customers to enjoy the view of the river from the terrace before walking into the interior. The designer also opened some parts of the café’s second floor to connect it with the restaurant.
Project Name
Tewa Café Ayutthaya
Location
Ayutthaya, Thailand
Completed year
2021
Areas
200 square metres
Architect & Interior Design
BodinChapa Architects
Structure Engineer
Papop Mora
Contractor & Owner
Seksan Thaisom
Images
Rungkit Charoenwat
