Leisure

DDA Building Services Consulting Engineers were employed to undertake the complete M&E design for the development of an existing retail store into a new Thai street food style restaurant.

This is nothing like any of the peaceful and elegant Thai restaurants we’ve come across before. Part of the Leeds-based Sukhothai Restaurant Group, Zaap is all about celebrating the fast-paced, noisy and colourful  experience that is Thai street food.

Carefully designed to look chaotic, this demanding brief required the team to work closely with the client developing both the concept and detailed design.  The existing shell was converted and transformed using a bespoke theme to create the feeling of dining in a Bangkok street market. The hustle and bustle is evoked by loud music, tuk-tuk dining booths, popcorn machines and bus stops!

There’s an open kitchen, giving the diners direct contact with their order as it is freshly prepared. Food prepared on this scale and at this speed requires high temperatures and excellent ventilation to remove cooking fumes at source. The replacement of excess hot air with cool, clean air maintains a comfortable  working and pleasant eating environment

A blend of lighting techniques highlight corrugated metal walls, graffiti and illuminated advertisements to provide an atmospheric backdrop to temple bells, paper lanterns, festoon lights and laundry! Lighting and lighting controls were carefully chosen by  DDA . The team designed bespoke luminaire configurations and lighting rafts and employed specialists to bring the famous Thai neon street signage into an internal space.