Conceiving, designing and constructing BeachComber Restaurant in Stalida, Crete, right next to the sea has been a prime challenge: innovation in design and construction processes has merged with local and traditional practices and materials, and prosperity in a typical touristic region has become compatible with a new model for sustainable growth.

Earthy, non reflective, materials such as wood, stone and cement have been utilized in order to give a coarse, natural feeling. Orientation, wind flow, sun protection, thermal behavior and energy consumption have been carefully taken into account during all design stages. Attention has been paid in respecting the local flora too.

Transitional, adaptive spaces with a variety of degrees of freedom and openness play a crucial role in a Mediterranean environment which aims at offering comfort for six months per year. Every shape, every surface and volume, follow the dominant curved paths, which derive from the initial topography of the land.

Furthermore curves were exploited in order to maximize the sea front and also facilitate the paths from the street towards the beach. One of these curves serves as the path for materializing a 30 meter long stone wall which becomes the new physical border between main and secondary functional sections. The kitchen is placed on this path, right in the heart of the project.

Project details

Title: BeachComber Restaurant

Location: Stalida, Crete

Architectural design: PARTHENIOS architects & associates

Photos: George Fakaros