borderless interweave ── restaurant design

Borderless Interweave

Restaurant Design - OpenHouse

To design a fine dining restaurant for OpenHouse Restaurant owned by Andrew Wong and Brian Quirk, located at APW Bangsar, 29, Jalan Bangsar, 5, Jalan Riong, 59100 Kuala Lumpur, Wilayah Persekutuan Kuala Lumpur. With approximately 12,000 sqf, the restaurant is designed following the concept of ‘borderless interweave’.

The initial idea is derived from the restaurant name of OpenHouse — one of Malaysia’s most endearing and unique experience. Different races would invite friends, families and even strangers to celebrate festivals over food.

The concept is inspired by a combination of 3 keywords - amalgamate, interweave and disseminate. Described as ‘a unity of separation and coherence’, OpenHouse does not only serving as a fine dining restaurant but also as a gathering space. As shown in the concept sketches, trapezium openings symbolise a welcoming approach, interlocking each other to further disseminate. The leveled trapezium openings appear to be borderless yet interaction is allowed between the interconnected spaces. ‘Amalgamate’ is the integration of different races in Malaysia. Moreover, ‘interweave’ is a process of a better understanding of each other. Lastly, ‘disseminate’ is to spread the traditional yet unique experiences worldwide. Gather strength, spread the culture of Malaysia.

Associated with the concept, the interior comprises various levels of floor plates which satisfy the idea of clustering. The intriguing point of the restaurant is that these places are not hermetically isolated but are connected to one another in its unique relativity. Besides that, the restaurant also provides flexible spaces and facilities that can adopt and adapt to different daily and seasonal activities. The idea is to create a gallery-like experience moving through the spaces, where passers-by could learn unintentionally.