Occupying a lot at Alameda Jaú in the Jardins district, São Paulo, Deliqatê is a restaurant specialized in gourmet sandwiches and is the first enterprise from this group of investors whose intention is to take it to other capital cities in the country.

The 5 x 30 m terrain was previously occupied by a two-story building from the 40s that, after being closed for about fifteen years, was totally deteriorated and was demolished in order to give space to the new building. We preserved the lateral and back walls, which leaned against the neighbours and were built with solid terracotta bricks. They were carefully preserved and reinforced during the brickwork so that the brick-surface aspect was part of the project after it was finished, as a kind of reminiscence of what was there before the new building.

The new building may be understood as a big steel gray structure that was introduced in this small space between the neighbours and the street. This structure aims to support the slabs of the three stores and the roofing, also locking the neighbouring walls.

Due to the lot’s high unevenness, the restaurant has three stores—the ground floor, where the entrance, front desk, counter, table area and outdoor deck and terrace are; the basement, where the kitchen and other service spaces are; and a mezzanine-shaped upper floor that stoops over the entrance and has indoor and outdoor table area, and may be cut off from the ground floor in case of closed events. The roof slab is occupied by a water tank and air-conditioning, exhaustion and air inlet systems, etc.

We sought a permanent contact between the building and the street. So we did not use fences or walls, and the five meter mandatory setback was occupied by a deck surrounded by plants, as well as a front totally filled with glass. The six meters of glass are divided in two sections: The lower one has sliding panels, which allow the entrance of clients and the communication between the internal area and the deck. As for the higher one, it is composed with fixed glass and, behind that, a big stand for the display of products takes over all this section of the front.

The artworks have a remarkable presence in the project. The high-ceiling area at the entrance is occupied by a big hanging structure that is lit up at night and is part of the composition of the building and its relation with the outdoors area. At the ground floor, one of the faces of the terrain is occupied almost entirely with a panel made of hydraulic tiles by the artist Fábio Flaks, which crosses the whole restaurant and ends at the backyard, creating a connection between different spaces.

The coatings are generally more neutral and sober, such as fulget, Portuguese pavement, concrete plates, and even the browstones from the preexisting house. White and grey predominate in the floors, walls and ceiling of the entire project, whereas other more bright colors can be found in the furniture and artworks.

The existence of three table area highlights the idea to make more subtle the separation between indoors and outdoors and to make possible having lunch, dinner or even an ordinary coffee among trees, leaves and flowers, almost as an urban oasis.