Vietvana - Ponce City Market

This repeat client came to us wanting to expand their Vietnamese restaurant chain to a food hall environment. They wanted their space to have an authentic street stall aesthetic and to maximize every square inch to accommodate their complex menu.

This restaurant chain focuses heavily on bringing the streets of Sai Gon to America. We worked closely with the clients and a branding company to ensure the feel of the stall was authentic and had a unique street-food feel. The yellow-hued venetian plaster partitions and hand formed tile recall the heavy French Colonial influence seen in many of the streets of Vietnam. Conversely, we designed a modern custom wood-framed storefront system with integrated powder coated metal shelving to double as storage and as display for pho bowls. The base of the storefront system evokes a more traditional Vietnamese vernacular with the use of bamboo paneling and concrete-look counter-tops. Wood awnings cover each countertop area to invoke the feeling of being outdoors. The implementation of neon signage and wheat-paste applied custom designed travel posters were inspired directly by food stalls in Sai Gon and to help customers with wayfinding.

We wanted to ensure customers had a place to enjoy their food without leaving the stall. Though space is fairly limited in the food hall corridor, we designed two countertop areas that sit underneath wood awnings with warm, rope-light pendant fixtures. This creates an intimate space to eat while watching food being prepared, all in the midst of a bustling food hall.