Gaga Flagship Restaurant in Beijing

Alan Grillo Spina

• Architecture and lighting design

dongqi Design has transformed an 8-meter-high building in Taikoo Li Sanlitun into the first gaga flagship restaurant in Beijing, by creating a garden up in the air, at the center of a densely populated city. Festooned with plants, the spatial structure perfectly matches gaga’s brand concept -- an organic fusion of food & beverage with the natural environment.

photo_credit dongqi Design — dongqi Design

gaga and dongqi Design gives up adding second stories to increase square footage. Instead, they build a main stairway, starting from the bar counter at the center, prolonging up to the air, and finally forming several garden paths. The stairs, which connect the outdoor terrace in the air, ascend in different directions and end with small landings at different heights. Carefully selected olive trees are placed on those high and low landings, being part of the vertical system of greenery paths.

The entire rustic space is a result of dongqi Design’s close cooperation with the structural engineer. This exquisite steel structure system looks like a kite flying in the sky.

photo_credit Alan Grillo Spina — dongqi Design

The three glass curtain walls that enclose the space and the roof at the center are specially designed to allow natural light to enter, further contributing to the green ambiance. Meanwhile, dongqi Design manages to integrate the adjustable lighting system with the garden structure in the air. Such design blurs the line between the sunlight and the artificial light to give two distinctive dining experiences -- one is in the daytime and the other is after sunset. The menu boards naturally descend from the structural system above the bar. They work efficiently with the three-sided operating desk to serve different dining functions and demands.

The alternate use of bamboo and stainless steel, which have different material vibes, also results in an appealing atmosphere for the space. As their vertical arrangement indicates rigid orders, a rhythmic element is added to the freely floating staircase. In addition, the specially treated bamboo boards, full of gentle and delicate texture, and the stainless steel that is starkly different from bamboo, all help to shape the unique brand identity. To produce fascinating changes for walkers at the garden paths, dongqi Design skillfully controls the percentage of stainless steel and bamboo as well as connection joints from the bar to the balustrade. The share of steel increases with the vertical height, so does the reflection and light-shadow changes, resulting in a lighter and more graceful space.

The entrance adopts large bi-fold doors that open vertically, and the building facade continue to use the artful combination of bamboo and stainless steel from the interior design. With two gates at the entrance, the restaurant is divided into a greenhouse with natural stone flooring and the main interior space with polished concrete flooring. The greenhouse serves as a wonderful indoor-outdoor transition, not only providing a better dining ambiance, but also creating a comfortable experience inside the building, against the bleak winter of Beijing. The original beams and columns besides the walls and in the air are kept as intact as possible and the kitchen on the end side of the space is equipped with the same large vertical bi-fold windows as the building facade. With these windows, food preparation becomes more entertaining.