From the architect. The project is the highlight in the ecotourism resort offering charming natural landscape in northern Vietnam. The investor attaches special importance to preservation of environmental landscape, natural ecology of the region and wishes to build a resort which is typical of Vietnamese villages.
Unique architecture of the restaurant is inspired by an image of traditional conical hat closely connected to the beauty of Vietnamese women, simple but no less luxurious.
The project with the ground in the shape of a twelve-sided polygon and of concrete structure is unfinished and has been abandoned for many years due to economic crisis. Take advantage of these concrete columns and beams available, the architects have researched to design the roof supporting structure with 12 bamboo frames leaning against the floor and 24 frames on concrete beams. This structural solution brings people a romantic outside scenery view which is not obstructed. The restaurant in the shape of a conical hat has an area of more than 700m2 and is 15 meters high.
Bamboo is connected together with lashing and bamboo bolt to form a frame on the floor before being erected by crane. Bamboo frame connected with the foundation and concrete beams with metal pipes, iron pins makes the structure stable. This construction technique is easy to make by low-skilled worker with simple tools.
The type of bamboo used is iron bamboo (solid bamboo, local name is "tầm vông") with the appropriate mechanical properties such as high pressure resistant, easy to bend. The roof is made of natural leaves which are very light and easy to shape. In the middle, there is a skylight of 1.56 meters in diameter to get natural light.
The widest span between two columns is 24.6 meters and the largest diameter of the conical hat-shaped restaurant is 32 meters. The project has expressed great spanning ability of bamboo structure that it is not weaker than iron and steel in spite of low-technical requirement. Moreover, bamboo bearing structure is also a decorative element making interior space more unique.
