TRENTATRES | Pablo Muñoz Payá Arquitectos

Throughout the Mediterranean there are dozens of domes and roofs that shine filtered by light and the blue of the sea flashes with ceramics. Almost a hundred years ago, the moment in which a perception evokes a memory was baptized as "Proust's Madeleine". An effect that inevitably arises when entering Trenta Tres, the renovated takeaway rice place in Petrer.

The project occupies a ground floor located on Avenida de Madrid, the main intersection - and the widest street - between the Elda and Petrer conurbation, near Alicante. The program is spread over the 72.67 m2 between the public counter where the traditional rice dishes are ordered and delivered and the kitchen reserved for the Trenta Tres team.

The lighting and the finishing of the materials already advance at street level the appeal of a design that combines modernity and tradition. On a white ceramic panel, to match the interior, the store's label is displayed in blue. Longitudinal strips of light illuminate the walls, inviting you to enter the counter directly with the passage marked by two elongated tables.

With an inexpensive and handcrafted design, even the tables have been designed on purpose for the takeaway, using oak wood with a handcrafted system of white lacquered sheet steel. A blue wall on the left and a white wall on the right are reminiscent of Proust's "madeleine" with glazed ceramic designed in Castellón.

The characteristic relief and volume of the piece not only recalls the typical tiles, but also the waves of the sea dancing with the light. Behind the counter, the back of the public area is topped by a masonry wall, a traditional stone-laying technique from Bateig, a quarry near Petrer. Chopped and laid by hand, the Bateig stone blends with the terracotta-like floor and brings clarity to the perspective of the takeaway.

Planters that flank the counter add a touch of freshness to the place. For this, species such as the bird of paradise (Strelitzia augusta) and areca palms (Dypsis lutescens) have been chosen. To increase the feeling of spaciousness, their heights are alternated to invite you to look at the ceiling. A network of jute ropes, in the style of boat ropes, cross the false ceiling to increase the warmth of the takeaway with a simple but effective solution.