Office Inainn adds timber restaurant to barn in Norway
Office Inainn has inserted Nikkakjøkken, a timber-framed restaurant, into the concrete and timber envelope of a barn in Valldal, Norway.
Minimising impact to the barn's pitched volume, Office Inainn designed the restaurant's timber frame as an independent module – conceived as "a second layer" to the structure.
Along with the creation of the Nikkakjøkken restaurant, the project included the updating and preservation of the three-storey barn's existing concrete and wooden structure, with all-new interventions built from timber.
"We took a reuse-first approach: keep the barn and add only what is necessary," studio founder Maksymilian Sawicki told Dezeen.
"Rather than a rebuild, we inserted an independent timber restaurant core inside the existing envelope, so the historic structure remains intact and legible."
"The exterior and roof are largely retained and repaired only where necessary; all new work reads as a secondary layer," Sawicki added.
Nestled into a sloping site, the barn encompasses 127 square metres and is accompanied by a neighbouring guesthouse.
An entrance at ground level provides access to the back-of-house facilities. Here, an internal staircase and a second, raised entrance provide access to the first floor, where a sauna and spa are located.
Above this, the restaurant, along with a kitchen, can be found on the second floor. This can be accessed via a ramp protruding from the barn's exterior.
To create the Nikkakjøkken restaurant, Office Inainn designed the secondary timber core to be demountable, so as not to damage the existing structure.
Inside, the pitched roof structure creates a lofty dining space that doubles as an events space and is illuminated by a large glazed facade overlooking the surrounding landscape.
A series of round tables fill the space and are framed by timber trusses, walls and flooring.
"Timber offered low embodied impact, local craft and supply, and a material compatibility that keeps the structure as the project's character," Sawicki said.
"The insert is entirely timber with dry, demountable connections, and the glazing is calibrated to frame views without altering proportions."
Elsewhere, a barn was converted into a compact house with geometric windows near Florence, Italy, and biomaterials were used to adapt a wood-framed barn into a structure and library in rural Vermont.
The photography is by Mathias Sæther.
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