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They say revenge is a dish best served cold, but so is Michelin-starred food if British architects Pearce+ are to be believed.
The design firm created a temporary, gilded, inflatable restaurant, engineered to shield diners from temperatures as low as -30 degrees on a frozen river in Winnipeg, Canada in January and February.
Over a span of 22 days, leading chefs from across North America gathered for the RAW:Almond culinary festival on the ice, housed within a distinctive structure.
In total more than 2,000 diners relished culinary delights amidst the ice and snow of the Canadian winter.
Owen Hughes Pearce, Director, Pearce+, said: “It was incredible to be involved in this project and be able to put into practice ideas of reusable and inflatable architecture in extreme environments.
“We were able to really explore a complex structure using rebar all while understanding the brutality of working in -30 degrees celsius.”
Constructed in a mere ten days, the 48-seat temporary restaurant emerged on the snow-covered expanse of the Arctic Canadian winter, marking the 10th anniversary of the RAW:Almond event.
Revealing the difficulties of working in the bitter cold, Hughes Pearce added: “Within seconds of removing a mitten your hands sting with pain and go numb. My arctic rated gloves from the UK froze solid so I could no longer clench or move my hand. This project really pushes you to consider what’s important in a design.”
This celebration of Canadian cuisine and the harsh winter conditions has seen RAW:Almond pop-up restaurants established in various locations throughout Manitoba and beyond.
Each building is crafted with a focus on sustainable reuse of construction materials, echoing the ethos of the food served within: reducing waste, finding elegance in simplicity, celebrating local identity creatively, and embracing a global perspective.
For the 2024 project, the up-and-coming British architecture studio Pearce+ collaborated with Canadian designer Joe Kalturnyk, co-founder of the project alongside acclaimed chef Mandel Hitzer.
Kalturnyk added: “RAW:almond was started as a way of celebrating that which makes Winnipeg unique - winter at the place where the city was founded - the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers.”
Pearce+ proposed a structure drawing on their expertise in inflatable technology, demonstrated by projects like the prototype Martian House in Bristol, UK.
The use of inflatables allowed for swift construction and easy relocation, aligning perfectly with RAW's ethos of temporary architecture. The shiny reflective interior aided heat retention in the Arctic weather.
The 2024 building featured a 140 sqm dining area with two tables seating 24 guests each. An entrance lobby provided insulation, while buttress structures at either end offered stability against strong winds and emergency egress routes. A flat-pack kitchen catered to Michelin-starred chefs and high-quality cookery.
The main dining area utilised a Diagrid framework constructed from 18-metre-long, rented steel reinforcing bars bundled in groups of three. Custom inflatable elements, developed with Inflate Ltd, were individually inflatable to counter pressure decreases in cold temperatures.
The interior lining featured a foil layer to reflect heat, reducing heating demand. Transparent panels at the apex allowed natural light to illuminate the dining area. All fixings were mechanical to withstand extreme temperature fluctuations.
Hughes Pearce, director of Pearce+, travelled from the UK to assist during construction, enduring harsh conditions to meet the stringent opening deadline.
The project culminated in a blessing from an Indigenous elder, marking its successful completion - with diners then enjoying some of North America’s best food while sheltering from the Arctic temperatures!
Where: Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
When: 02 Apr 2024
Credit: Pearce+/Simeon Rusnak/Cover Images
**EDITORIAL USE ONLY. MATERIALS ONLY TO BE USED IN CONJUNCTION WITH EDITORIAL STORY. THE USE OF THESE MATERIALS FOR ADVERTISING, MARKETING OR ANY OTHER COMMERCIAL PURPOSE IS STRICTLY PROHIBITED. MATERIAL COPYRIGHT REMAINS WITH STATED SUPPLIER.**
