Lei Ơi Cà Phê / TRAN TRUNG Architects

Architects: TRAN TRUNG Architects
Area: 96 m²
Year: 2024
Photographs: Hoang Le
Manufacturers: INAX, Vicostone Quartz Surfaces, Vietceramics
Lead Architects: Tran Trung
Landscape: Bap’s Garden
Designer: Nguyen Dang Bon
Drawings: Truong Ngoc Toan, Ngo Quoc Vu, Nguyen Ngoc Tien
Program / Use / Building Function: Coffee Shop
City: Da Nang
Country: Vietnam

Lei Ơi Cà Phê coffee shop designed by TRAN TRUNG Architects in Da Nang addresses the constraints of a dense residential context by integrating residential function with openness to nature. The spatial composition centers on a translucent staircase that enables light, airflow, greenery, shade, and scent to move freely through the building, forming an interior environment shaped by the passage of time. Material reuse guides the project’s construction strategy, incorporating salvaged corrugated metal, broken tiles, and scrap components throughout the facade and interior. Along the east and south walls, stacked fired clay bricks form porous surfaces that support passive ventilation, offer framed views, and contribute to indoor cooling through a misting system that activates the bricks’ water absorption. The architects envisioned the structure as an open box where shifting light replaces physical boundaries, linking architectural elements with people and nature in a continuous flow.

“Lei ơi Cà Phê” is located in a dense residential area in the southeast of Da Nang City, on a site bordered by tightly clustered narrow houses. This context posed the challenge of creating a coffee space that merges residential living with full exposure to nature, while offering a counterbalance to the city’s accelerating pace.

The primary inspiration behind the design originates from the exploration of a fully open structure, with circulation organized around a translucent staircase. This approach generates an internal space that incorporates natural elements including light and shadow, airflow, greenery, shade, and the scent of coffee. The building not only integrates with its context but also establishes a unique environment where the progression of light throughout the day becomes a tangible experience.

The design, from its exterior shell to the interior spaces, reflects the passage of time through the use of modest materials, expressing a philosophy centered on “reviving the life cycle” of construction waste and discarded materials that might otherwise be overlooked. Each corrugated metal roofing sheet, facade element, and interior decorative component, including broken floor tiles, was deliberately sourced from scrap yards and repurposed for functional use throughout the project.

The east- and south-facing walls are perforated through the stacking of fired clay bricks, forming “breathing spaces” that enable passive air circulation through the brick openings. This configuration offers framed views and contributes to regulating the interior microclimate. As hot air approaches the building, it is cooled before entering, due to the water absorption capacity of traditional clay bricks, which are kept moist and store water through a misting system installed above the walls. This natural process reduces the need for mechanical cooling on hot days in Central Vietnam.

The interior was designed to transform complex lighting conditions into an expressive spatial experience by shaping the structure as an open box filled with streaks of sunlight. The building is opened to its fullest extent, generating a large, uninterrupted space where the separation between interior and exterior disappears. Continuous light flows throughout the space, linking architectural elements, people, and nature while producing a dynamic visual composition of light.