Brick by brick

M:OFA’s latest project, the Chatter House, introduces diners to the famed irish charm and hospitality in Khan market, new delhi

“The Chatter House originated from the idea of bringing the charm of vintage Irish pubs and bars to New Delhi,” says Manish Gulati, principal architect of M:OFA. Through design, material and ambience, the restaurant and bar offers a complete pub-dining experience to its patrons.

Located in New Delhi’s famed Khan Market, the restaurant is spread across 1,700 sqft over two levels and caters to 75 to 80 diners at a time. Both the levels come equipped with a bar and seating arrangements ranging from fixed to flexible in the form of booth and chair seating. The structure originally housed a high-end café, which Gulati refurbished with added architectural interventions and furniture pieces to replicate the essence and ambience of an Irish pub.

“The brick–lined, barrel vaulted ceiling and circular windows were new additions to the structure. It was built exclusively to iterate the design brief of an Irish pub. But a restaurant like this in Delhi with its relevant contextual and climatic parameters needed an essence of the stated theme to harmoniously mingle with the culture of our society,” he points out. The design draws these parallels with the indigenous use of materials like the brick cladding done in lime mortar, the terrazzo flooring and Indian teak wood in panelling.