A series of domestic and foreign architectural publications have just introduced architectural works in the Da Nang connecting the Bach Dang walking street, including the Baba Yaga restaurant, a project using recycled materials with a wooden and acacia roof. Coming to Baba Yaga, everyone enjoys a rustic, close and environmentally-friendly feeling.

The project Baba Yaga uses recycled materials. Photo: GIA PHUC

Han River landscape's architectural highlight

The Han River landscape architecture cluster on the Bach Dang walking street, which already has many beautiful architectural works such as the Dragon, Tran Thi Ly, Nguyen Van Troi bridges and APEC Park, is now enriched with new architectural works, including Baba Yaga restaurant. If APEC Park has ‘high-flying kites’, Baba Yaga architecture is ‘the breath of the wind’.

Amidst the hustle and bustle of life, each of us yearns for a place to share joy or confide in family and friends. Baba Yaga has become an ideal stop to convey those emotions. In recent days, groups of foreign tourists have come to Baba Yaga as a place to visit, check-in and enjoy cuisine during their Da Nang journeys.

Located at the intersection of September 2 - Binh Minh 6 streets connecting to Bach Dang Street, Baba Yaga is emerging as a project that keeps up with the green architecture trend in the city. This is the result of meticulous care, harmoniously combining three elements: people - nature - architecture.

With a love of trees and a refined aesthetic taste, the investor has renovated the prefabricated iron frame into a unique restaurant space, optimising function and cost. The designer reused the existing structural frame, covering it with a layer of acacia trees running along the open sides of the restaurant, creating a private, sophisticated space. Large interwoven green trees help reduce noise, dust and climate impacts.

The project uses user-friendly materials such as recycled wood, wooden roofs and acacia trees, bringing a rustic, close and sustainable feeling to the environment. The project has a harmonious, pure architectural style, impressive shapes, interwoven with the green colour of trees.

The person in charge of designing the Baba Yaga project is Master-Architect Ngo Duc Du, 34, from Binh Trung commune, Thang Binh, Quang Nam Province. Right after graduating from Ho Chi Minh City University of Architecture, in 2015, Architect Du joined the Sun Group Corporation.

Architect Du’s first project was the architectural design of the Golden Bridge at the Ba Na Hills Tourist Area and then a series of other projects at this highly popular tourist area. His passion for architectural design led Architect Du to his own path with the formation of an architectural design consultancy called ‘Duoitancay Concept’.

Du said: “I really like nature, plants, and the architectural design of the Baba Yaga restaurant is my first product. No one imposed it or I personally took the initiative to follow any trend... I myself have always loved nature and herbs, so it has seeped into my blood and flesh”.

Architect Ngo Duc Du. Photo: GIA PHUC

Recycled materials into new values

To complete the Baba Yaga restaurant project, architect Du and the project owner, Mr. Nguyen Dang Khoa, travelled to the mountainous districts of Quang Nam Province, up to the provinces of the Central Highlands region to buy materials such as acacia tree trunks and pepper poles. The project used 2,000 waste acacia wood bars that did not meet export standards for pulp processing; over 200 pepper poles discarded by farmers when replacing them with concrete poles and 30m3 of sawn wood panels.

After the project was completed, Mr. Nguyen Dang Khoa said: “Baba Yaga has brought success from the beginning because of its architectural design value. A restaurant serving affordable food and services but has a luxurious space that is close to people's daily lives"

Baba Yaga was quickly known to domestic and foreign tourists as soon as it opened, and this place is a quite satisfactory check-in spot for them. “In the city centre, I was just walking around but suddenly saw a wooden house that looked very strange, different from other buildings and shops. Baba Yaga made me excited because of its recycled material design; the space inside has many trees. If I have the chance, I will come back to relax and enjoy the food here,” said Massim, a tourist from Italy.

Architect Nguyen Ba Chien, the Director of Viet Nam Culture Construction and Architecture Joint Stock Company, commented that Baba Yaga has a well-processed shape and volume, without destroying the surrounding landscape. The use of recycled materials from wood is not only environmentally friendly but also brings natural beauty to the venue.

“It is time for architects to focus on thinking about what society needs instead of doing what they want according to personal style and preferences. Because when considering a green design project, whether the project uses recycled materials or any other materials, it also needs to consider the usefulness of that project for social life.”, said architect Chien.

From the southern metropolis of Ho Chi Minh City, Architect Lam Ngoc Duc, the Director of Cat Viet Architecture Company praised: “Baba Yaga's architectural design is wonderful because this is a unique architectural project that has just appeared as a highlight for the city. It must be an architect with professional expertise and strong passion to dare to challenge himself with recycled materials, and above all, understand the usefulness of the materials. Baba Yaga’s design has not too sophisticated lines but creates softness in the urban space that is increasingly being concreted. I am looking forward to my business trip to Da Nang city to immerse myself in the unique architectural space at Baba Yaga”.

By reusing materials and renovating existing architectural structures, Baba Yaga not only saves financial investment for investors but also provides a business and event venue for local residents. This sustainable architectural practice not only reduces waste to the environment but also illustrates the potential for reusing used materials.

It can be seen that the use of recycled wood is a typical example of the perfect combination between architecture and the environment. This is a sustainable material, helping to reduce pressure on natural resources. Recycling and reusing wood also helps reduce carbon emissions, contributing to climate protection.

When taking advantage of locally available raw materials, it also helps promote sustainable economic development, circular economy, and creates vibrant, creative and environmentally friendly living spaces.

Baba Yaga has been attracting the attention of domestic and foreign architects. Architectural design images of the project were published in prestigious international newspapers and magazines such as Archdaily (USA, Spain, Brazil, Colombia), Archello (Netherlands), Ground News, the biggest source for breaking news around the world, Vsszan (China) and Living Asean (Thailand).

Reporting by GIA PHUC - Translating by A.THU