Quintal Mogi Cafe / Luiza Nadalutti

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Text description provided by the architects.The project for Quintal Mogi, an establishment that encompasses a restaurant, café, and the sale of organic products, originated from the concept of the "quintal" itself—a space that evokes warmth, memories, affection, and simplicity, aiming to create a unique atmosphere for the location. Originally, the corner property was an old house that underwent various transformations over the years to accommodate different commercial uses. It had an unfavorable configuration, with improvised extensions, precarious roofs, various overlapping coverings, platforms, windows with limited visibility, and a completely closed facade facing the street. The first step was to promote the "opening" of the space by removing ceilings, unifying roofs, integrating spaces, and eliminating level differences.The facade posed a significant design challenge: a small protruding slab at the corner was demolished, and the roof was recessed to result in a more harmonious volume. New openings were created, and a new set of window frames was proposed to establish a more open relationship between the interior, the public walkway, and the sky, simultaneously ensuring natural ventilation and illumination for the interior spaces. At the entrance, sunlight is filtered through the naval plywood ceiling with serracopo perforations, creating a luminous effect. This serves as a transitional element between the exterior and interior, contributing to the sense of warmth and highlighting the jabuticaba tree planted around the iconic red mosaic floor. Additionally, new patios were created: the first one featuring a washbasin with a sculpted concrete sink providing access to the bathrooms, and the second one with a bench made of exposed concrete blocks designed for outdoor coffee. Both patios have terracotta-colored walls in dialogue with the mosaic floor, emphasizing the presence of greenery.The layout of the program considers the original configuration of the house. The kitchen and support spaces were positioned in the center of the floor plan between the preserved solid brick structural walls. The idea was to utilize the double depth of the wall to create a play of solids and voids with niches of different sizes. Granite pieces from the old countertops, removed during demolition, were reused in the finishes of each niche's base. One of the niches opens into the kitchen, forming a pass-through that facilitates the internal dynamics of the staff, allowing visual connection between the two environments and providing a perspective of the street for those inside the kitchen. In harmony with the fixed furniture at the café counter and internal areas, the furniture for the lounge was designed as a family of displays, including shelves, buffets, and counters with casters. The materiality combines exposed naval plywood in the shelves and cabinets, solid wood in the structure with joists, and French blue formica on some faces of the furniture for a color detail.