Karaván is one of the key hubs in Budapest's party district, a meeting point where Budapest nights begin. Located on a vacant lot on Kazinczy Street, the food truck courtyard brings to life the essence of what we imagine when thinking about the nightlife of the Jewish Quarter: exposed brick walls, the characteristic lamella gate from the 2010s, bohemian green spaces, and Balkan-style "order." However, the design of the vacant lot’s spaces wasn’t a carefully considered, efficient use of space, but rather a gradually developed, ad-hoc arrangement over the years. Our plan was meant to address this issue.

After the row of food trucks, we created a space that is formally well-defined, maintaining the strong axial alignment of the vacant lot while playing with it to create winding, intricate areas. This was achieved through the use of cabinets, raised garden beds, and auxiliary spaces. The base-level cladding was designed using broken bricks, while the furniture, raised garden beds, and walls of the auxiliary spaces were made from wooden slats. The overall visual result is a tribute to Budapest’s downtown exposed brick facades and the iconic archway of Karaván, which has become a landmark over the decades.