Japanese studio Takeshi Hosaka Architects have completed an igloo-like noodle restaurant near Mount Fuji, Japan.

Called Hoto Fudo, the building allows air from outdoors to circulate through large openings in the walls, apart from in the coldest season when curved acrylic sliding doors are used.

The design allows rain to fall at the edges of the interior, fog to enter through the openings and wind to circulate under the reinforced concrete shell.

Photographs are by Koji Fujii/Nacasa & Partners

The text below is from Takeshi Hosaka:

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HOTO FUDO This is a building like inside and outside.

The project was planned on the site with Mt. Fuji rising closely in the south and the two sides facing the trunk roads.

This building seems to belong to such nature objects as mountains and clouds. It is made from soft geometry, which will not arise from the figures like quadrangles and circles.

By continuously operating innumerable polygon mesh points, we have determined the shape that clears the conditions such as the consistency as shell construction and the undulations that ward off rainwater in spite of its free geometry. The RC shell with cubic surfaces creates such spaces as 530 square meters of seats, 140 square meters of kitchens, and 50 square meters of rest rooms, in such a manner that it envelops and opens them.

This building has no air conditioners. It is open to the air at most seasons, and people have a meal in the air like outside air. The curved acrylic sliding door is closed only during the strong wind and the coldest season. Giving 60 mm thick urethane insulation to the outside of the RC shell and keeping a stable RC temperature secures a stable temperature environment for the building like inside and outside, and also reduces the deformation volume due to the temperature of RC to make the building last longer.

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For the lighting plan, we have determined such illumination as makes people simply feel changes in the evening light and does not make insects gather around the lights. When it rains, rain comes in near windows and doors. In the spaces where rain does not come in, people enjoy the sound of raindrops. When it is foggy, the fog comes into the building. When it snows, it becomes a landscape buried in snow, and birds and animals will visit there. In this place like the middle between nature and art, people eat hoto rich in natural ingredients.

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*HOTO is traditional local noodle food.
ARCHITECT: TAKESHI HOSAKA
STRUCTURAL ENGINEERS: OVE ARUP & PARTNERS JAPAN Ltd HITOSHI    YONAMINE
Name of the project    HOTO FUDO

Location of the project Fuji Kawaguchiko, Minamituru-gun, Yamanashi, JAPAN
It is far from Tokyo about two hours by the train. It is near the Mt.Fuji.

Structure: RC
Site: 2493.82 m2
Building area: 733.98 m2
Floor area ratio: 726.30 m2
Building height: 7460 mm
No. of floors: 1F
Building function: A local traditional food restaurant