mud walls, solid wood + copper finishes complete restaurant interior by studio suido in osaka

japanese design practice studio suido has recently completed the relocation of ‘ran-ran’, a restaurant located in ibaraki, osaka, famous for its candied sweet potatoes. the shop which was previously situated on a busy shopping street, has now been moved to a single wooden house where the owner’s family used to live. the pre-existing living space has been refurbished to accommodate the new function.

all images by tatsuya tabii

the restaurant’s main dish is the ‘daigaku-imo’ (japanese candied sweet potatoes); ‘because of the simplicity of the dish, the strong commitment to the ingredients and cooking methods is reflected, and we think it is the ran-ran style’ studio suido shares. taking into consideration the 20-year-old history of the shop, as well as its established unique tastes and cooking methods, the architects have made a conscious effort to highlight the spirit of its distinct style in the interior.

within the interior, natural materials have been used, such as mud walls, washi paper using persimmon juice, and solid wood. copper is featured as the metal material of the design, in order to harmonize with the color tone of the natural materials. since copper changes its appearance more quickly over time, comparedd to other metals, it blends harmoniously with the old materials. what’s more, sweet potato peels which are discarded in large quantities every day, are kneaded into the mud walls to create original ‘ran-ran style’ finishes.

the pre-existing threshold has been preserved, with is presence emphasized with an apitong-flooring and a copper plate transition. the overall design avoids ‘heavy makeup’ design, which hides the existing materials with new ones, but instead it recognizes the existing structure as a texture and tries to balance new with old elements carefully.

in order to harmonize with the context of the surroundings, the exterior wall finishes were intentionally left as they were. furthermore, the studio decided to remove the wall of the front street and design an open garden to create a small sequential change within the town. an existing porch with 3.6m of frontage to the entrance was also converted, making use of the existing fittings, and adding new eaves to extend the generosity of the entrance.