Client: Startup Restaurant LLC
Location: 1390 S. Colorado Blvd, Denver CO 80222
Size: 2,500 s.f.
Photography: Paul Vu

Broken Rice is a fast-casual restaurant serving traditional Asian street-food with a modern feel. Offering contemporary takes on classic staples from Vietnam, Thailand, China, and elsewhere in Asia, Broken Rice espouses the belief that real ingredients, both locally sourced and mindfully prepared, are the keys to providing intensely flavorful & healthy food. Broken Rice serves breakfast, lunch and holds a full-service bar, that serves a variety of locally brewed beers and signature cocktails.

Inspired by Asian landscapes, colors and textures, Broken Rice reconsiders the fast casual restaurant model in a tasteful and minimal aesthetic while incorporating technological features such as USB ports at all tables. The hexagonal geometry visible in the project is derived from traditional Vietnamese pattern studies seen most frequently in antique tiles, recognizable silhouettes of lakes and mountains from the region, as well repetitive objects, textures and colors seen in Asian street markets are visible through screens lining both sides of the restaurant. The effect is that of looking out into a tastefully abstract panoramic vista with cultural references layered throughout.

The use of color, inspired by breathtaking sunset imagery of landscapes, is deployed throughout the restaurant to create false perspectives, produce depth in the space, and facilitate cozy smaller dining conditions, such as the banquette boxes that feel very much as though they live in the light of a golden sunset.

Folding glass patio doors at the front of the restaurant open up completely, allowing for the restaurant to spill onto the outdoor patio, where guests can wind down from their work day and enjoy Broken Rice with a view to the Rocky Mountains.

Inspired by Vietnamese landscapes, colors and textures, Broken Rice reconsiders the fast casual restaurant model in a tasteful and minimal aesthetic while incorporating technological features such as USB ports at all tables.