Haldiram’s as a brand has prided itself over being a homegrown and proudly Indian franchise, a household name in the country that has received global adulation. Seeking an overhaul of their identity in the form of an elevated spatial narrative, Haldiram’s collaborated with groupDCA to create their newest café venue in Rajouri Garden, New Delhi.
Contemporary Café with an Elevated Spatial Narrative | groupDCA
Visit: groupDCA
The site at hand was a former Mercedes showroom and inherently blessed the bare shell with a capacious floorplate and appreciable internal heights. The primary intention was to remain honest to the ethos and lineage of tradition that Haldiram’s has embodied over 80 years while patenting a new-fangled design language that is contemporary. The elevation dons a minimalist yet classic demeanour with its trademark scarlet signage, which establishes the primary connection with the patrons who resonate with the brand’s persona.
The layout has been envisioned as three core zones that have been pragmatically designed while balancing function and aesthetics. Over 50% of the floorplan hosts the kitchen, service areas, and display counters with the brand’s products.
The first segment comprises the Café and Retail sections. The former is to encourage patrons to visit the venue across the day and to relish authentic dishes on the menu while utilising the space for collaborative meetings or small-scale discussions, much like a regular bistro would function.
Headed by Architects Rahul Bansal and Amit Aurora, groupDCA is a multidisciplinary Architecture and Design firm based in New Delhi. With highly acclaimed and award-winning projects across diverse typologies, the firm’s creations redefine design paradigms intrinsically.
Modelled on a similar principle of that of a duty-free retail zone in airports, the newly introduced retail segment at the forefront hosts packaged goods and merchandise from the house of Haldiram’s. The immensely popular and newest additions, the ice-cream counter and retail zone tie into the larger blueprint while creating engaging segments of spaces that encourage the patrons to make a quick stop while billing their orders.
A larger family dining space is the second zone that can anchor groups of people who visit the venue and intend on enjoying their meal at the restaurant. The third zone consists of an expansive banquet area for larger congregations; this portion has organised auxiliary wet service areas like drinking water facilities, washrooms, and segregated garbage disposal sections to ensure smooth hosting and back-end functioning.
Materiality at the Haldiram’s restaurant assumes a pivotal and impactful role in shaping the milieu — the overarching intent of the space has been kept upscale and muted while creating a sensorial experience that also demands reduced maintenance.
The flooring is a composite of three tones of terrazzo ranging shades of white, light grey, and dark grey which make their way into the seating areas and circulation spaces. The walls have been finished in textured shades of grey and black tile signages have been suspended suavely across zones to demarcate the flow of spaces.
This Haldiram’s café venue is a homage to the franchise’s legacy, which has been upheld kudos to the brand’s efforts to serve the bonafide celebrated Indian cuisine the world over! To honour the driving inspiration that champions the Indian heritage and culinary palette, groupDCA has curated locally available and indigenous materials to create a hospitality experience that is resoundingly rooted in Indian inspiration.
The ceiling has been layered with a grid of wood-finish aluminium louvres that conceal services and Air Conditioning ducts have been inconspicuously camouflaged under white false ceilings over service counters. Lighting elements at the restaurant have been curated painstakingly to ensure an uplifting ambience. Customised suspended track lights are dotted with brushed brass spotlights which warmly illuminate tables and diffuse the light into the surroundings. Hints of brushed brass are further witnessed across skirtings and furniture finishes, creating a sense of understated luxury.
Fact File
Designed by: groupDCA
Project Name: Haldiram’s Restaurant
Location: New Delhi
Project Type: F&B Hospitality Design
Project Size: 6,370 Sq.ft
Year Built: 2021
Principal Architect: Rahul Bansal
Text Credit: Lavanya Chopra
Photograph Courtesy: Suryan and Dang
Firm’s Instagram Link: groupDCA
For Similar Project>>>Contemporary Elegance with a Fine Balance of Bold and Cozy
Perched on the ninth floor of a high-rise apartment in Pune, this 1,600 sq. ft. apartment opens to sweeping views of the city’s tekdi, the tree-lined hills that define its horizon. For its owners, a lawyer couple with demanding careers and a shared love for travel, the view was the home’s greatest luxury. For the […]
A celebration can be loud. Its impact doesn’t have to be. That idea shaped the very foundation of this project. For this Ahmedabad home, the terrace design has always been more than just a terrace. It is the social heartbeat of the family, where birthdays slip into late-night banter and weekends turn into impromptu gatherings. […]
Fursat, designed by Checkered Spaces, is a residential interior in the heart of Bangalore’s urban zone that resists Stylistic definition in favour of a Grounded, Process-led rustic charm. The home unfolds as an organic Accumulation of spaces, objects, and materials—shaped by time, memory, and everyday rituals rather than a fixed visual language. The Rustic Charm […]
A city’s craft often weaves itself into our lives, sometimes subtly, other times by deliberate choice—much like in this 5,000 sq. ft. Kolkata home envisioned by Spaces & Design. When Pooja Bihani, the principal architect of the studio, was commissioned to design a thoughtful space for a young family of three, she infused it with […]
Designed with intent, the interiors of this 3000 sq. ft. apartment unfold gently. We call it VANILLA DELIGHT, a house guided by a vanilla palette of muted, earthy tones with a strong delightful visual identity. This 3000 sq. ft. Home Is Guided By A Palette Of Vanilla | Beyond Lines Studio & Connecting The Dots […]
At Verde Residence in Pune, the design isn’t just about how the rooms look; it’s about how they feel. The goal was to create a calm house where the architecture retreats into the background to allow a deep, rhythmic silence to take center stage. Every detail is a deliberate invitation to pause, breathe, and experience […]
This 1,650-square-foot 3BHK in Pune is a study in modern residential design, Tailored for a family of six. The Pune home was defined by complete creative freedom, Allowing The Curved Angle Studio to transform a standard floor plan into a refined Sanctuary. This Pune Home Is A Study In Modern Residential Design | The Curved […]
This home is a thoughtful expression of the modern interior design style, infused with creative and personalised touches that make it both distinctive and inviting. Every material, colour, and finish has been carefully curated to achieve a sense of timelessness, with a clear emphasis on balance and harmony. The muted colour palette seamlessly extended across […]
When it comes to enhancing the kitchen window over the sink, various design ideas are possible to decorate Indian homes. From rooted in tradition to Western-style modular kitchens offer both functionality and attractive aesthetics. Apart from the sleek profile and raised breakfast counter, the kitchen window over sink is another spot to add appeal and […]
Indian homes place equal importance on pooja room door designs as they do on main door designs. With diverse and unique ethnic backgrounds, every family strives to reflect their personalities and identities in their designs. These identities can encompass religious or spiritual interests, local contexts, or other personal elements. This series of blogs, featuring 50 […]