CHAD Cafe | Nika Loiko

My customers wanted to open their next hookah bar, but in some new and interesting concept.
Location:
The location was chosen, on one of the central streets of Almaty, with an area of ​​173 m2. The disadvantage of the premises was that it was non-residential, but the first floor of a residential building, in a rough finish and without professional ventilation, as well as the lack of a second exit for loading and maintenance.
Having studied the environment from the target audience and the competitive environment, I proposed the concept of a hookah bar, in the format of an intellectual community with a library and original cuisine. Almaty is a large trading city with a rich history and beautiful architecture. It has many universities, theaters and other cultural centers. There are many young people, in particular students and people of art. Also Almaty is the center of fashion in Kazakhstan.
Concept:
I was given the task of making a non-trivial interior of the institution, with a club atmosphere.
It should be fashionable, atmospheric, tasty, interesting and not boring.
Since, in addition to the author's chef cuisine and street food, the concept included a hookah, it was necessary to create comfortable conditions for both eating and smoking hookah.
In addition, we wanted to distract the visitor from the smartphone as much as possible, so we complicated the task and added the library format. Also, as in any club, conditions were created for live music, DJ sets, and dancing.
A play on words and concepts - Chad - smoke and an African country, CHAD is an abbreviation in English Chill and Dream (Relax and dream), formed the basis of the concept.
It was decided to create a club atmosphere with notes of art and philosophy.
I was inspired by the work of the artist Olaf Hayek. I saw in them an interesting symbiosis of street art and book illustrations with vintage textures of old paint and concrete. Beautiful African women in Victorian era dresses with exotic flora and fauna in their hair. The combination of the incongruous on the one hand, on the other hand - the harmonious coexistence of nature and man.
This is how the interior concept was formed - elements of the classics with concrete textures, wall paintings in the style of portrait street art and book, botanical illustrations.
The contrast of styles, colors and textures, as well as the images of African girls, are interconnected by a golden thread. It is both decorative and philosophical.
Planning solution
A room was chosen for the restaurant, on the commercial floor, in a residential building. Previously, there was no catering there, so all communications, a ventilation system and professional soundproofing had to be laid. The open-plan room, with columns, was divided into kitchen (technological), hookah and main zones. Complicating the task of covering the ceiling was the fact that there were concrete beams along the ceiling between the columns, which had to be bent around by ventilation channels. All this significantly reduced the height of the room. As a result of full cladding and painting in the dark color of the ceiling, it was possible to achieve coziness and intimacy of the club atmosphere.
Floor covering - unique microcement Luxus Floor, three shades of purple and gray. Such a floor became my decorating experiment.
Furniture
All upholstered furniture was designed specifically for this project.
A full-wall sofa with a figured back, like a dune in the Sahara desert, goes from floor to wall, spreads under gusts of wind, intricate patterns. A soft sofa-sill, in a single wavy line, runs along the entire wall with windows overlooking the street.
Bookshelves, like high-rise buildings, as part of an urbanization that coexists with nature.
Ecology and safety:
All decorative, textured coatings are absolutely environmentally friendly, based on mineral, natural raw materials. Powerful professional supply and exhaust ventilation allows you to breathe clean air in the room. All materials and coatings meet fire safety standards.
Commercial concept:
The cafe opened before the closure of all catering outlets during the pandemic. During the pandemic, it continued to function as a home delivery service. After the removal of pandemic restrictions, the cafe survived and successfully continues its work, but having already excluded the hookah function. Now it is a favorite designer meeting place for the youth of the city during the daytime and in the evening, with live music, delicious author's cuisine, communication and reading books. All these factors speak of the success of the concept of the institution, to which I am involved as a designer.