A quirky, whimsical South Asian eatery in Bengaluru

Studio Taan projects the fun-loving, youthful and casual image of the restaurant brand spatially.

Curated by: Rupali Sebastian
Photographs: Hansoga Photography; courtesy Studio Taan

The site

The third outlet of Lucky Chan is located in the swanky new Forum South mall. A corner unit, with one side as a complete glass façade and another along the mall walkway. 

The brief

“Aesthetically, the client wanted the space to be fun and casual, a space that would appeal through generations,” says Neha Sapre, principal architect and founder, Studio Taan. “An ambience that was easy to flow into and did not require any amount of formality.” Functionally, the space was designed to cater to various groups of people: sofa seating flanked by planters creates a sense of privacy, the bench seating allows flexibility, loose seating in the centre under the large light feature allows for a quick meal while shopping or before a movie. 

The design intent

“The design intent was to create a casual dining experience reminiscent of dining experiences in Japan, or say Bangkok,” reveals the architect. “Neon lights, bold patterns, an almost industrial shell that hosts large sculptural light fixtures, all helped create a vibe for this outlet that was quirky and whimsical.”

The spatial configuration

The layout is almost triangular, one long side is glazed floor to ceiling, another side is the interface with the mall walkway. Set along the mall walkway are two façade arches with a railing as the divider between the walkway and the outlet. Along this railing are a set of sofa seaters divided by planters. At the heart of the space is a large sculptural light fixture with tables laid out diagonally below it. A series of tables, some sofas and some chairs are placed by the glass wall; opposite the chairs is a large bench seat with a mirror installation above. Beyond the diagonal seats is the sushi belt, with a large fabric light over it, and a display of painted ceramic bottles behind. This vignette is what catches your eye as you walk by the arches along the walkway. 

The colour and material palettes

The shell of the outlet is rustic: a grey textured paint on the walls, and the floor in a combination of terracotta tiles and terrazzo tiles. Within this rustic shell are two sculptural light fittings, one large rectangular shaped cluster of light boxes and another a tassel light above the sushi belt. The furniture has been designed minimally in birchply and oak. A film on the glass façade lends an iridescent glow through the space, bringing in a vibrant hue to all the tables along the façade. “This was a game changer,” says Neha. “What could’ve just been a transparent interface between the mall and the restaurant is now a dynamic surface reflecting everything on the inside in an array of colour.” Birchply has been used as a screen toward the front of the outlet overlaid with a peg wall. Though the material palette for the restaurant is minimal, the neon lights, the iridescent film and large sculptural light fixtures create a layered look through the space drawing the eye to multiple interesting features all at once.

The challenges

“We had a large volume and we set out to fill it up!,” exclaims Neha. “Layering can sometimes cause chaos so we had to be very careful on how we did it. Though there are so many focal points in this one tiny store, they all blend together seamlessly into one busy visual.”

Fact file

Project: Lucky Chan at Forum South
Location: Bengaluru
Area: 2,500 sq ft
Principal architect: Neha Sapre
Design team: Chandralekha Paul, Philip Koshy, Arun M and Nikita Xavier
Contractor: Kreative Index