Moija Yori

Located on the historic Old Street of Lukang, this restaurant occupies a building more than sixty years old. Time has left traces on its walls and beams, while tree roots and trunks have intertwined with the very structure of the house. The client hoped to preserve the soul of the old building while merging it with a Korean cuisine brand. The designers thus adopted “preservation and regeneration” as the central concept, weaving the original red brick walls, wooden beams, and mottled surfaces into the spatial narrative, while incorporating Korean elements to create a balance between foreign atmosphere and local memory.

The most striking feature is an old tree coexisting with the building, its roots embedded in the red brick wall like a natural sculpture, becoming the restaurant’s most symbolic “photo wall.” The designers chose to preserve and structurally reinforce it, allowing it to stand as a living testimony of time. Equally evocative are the original clay tiles of the old house. Though all made of red earth, they were pieced together in different patterns—from squares to hexagons—each segment revealing traces of past users’ lives.

Another highlight lies in the lighting. The long, narrow layout creates stark differences between the brightness at the front and back, with the middle section illuminated by natural light drawn in through the stairwell, contrasting with the dim, amber tones of the front, and producing a layered sense of time and space. Furnishings continue the spirit of “old items repurposed”: dining tables, folding screens, and chairs sourced from old factories together compose a nostalgic yet comfortable dining setting. Korean elements are subtly introduced through soft furnishings, such as hand-painted Hangul calligraphy on the walls and hanbok displayed in the private rooms.