Featuring Asian-inspired Dishes, Panoramic City Views From the 56 Floor, Original Mural Artwork and Lush Vegetation
The famous Ling Ling restaurant occupies a privileged space in Mexico City, on the top floor of one of the tallest skyscrapers on Paseo de la Reforma avenue. The restaurant’s goal is to create an attractive and versatile ambiance that invites guests to extend their stay from day to night, enjoying a relaxed experience together with the best views of the city.
The restaurant’s interior design concept started out with the idea of creating a space recalling the grand courtyards and terraces characteristic of Mexican architecture. One of the greatest challenges in the project design was how to generate the sensation of being in a courtyard on the 56th floor. The response was a formal approach and design process using structural elements and construction methods to help blur the boundary between architecture and interior design. The idea emerged to create a triple-height space with a portico structure and lush vegetation.
Employing an extensive palette of vegetable hues and light as the driving force of the entire project, the restaurant unfolds as a site filled with character and texture, both inside and out. With that in mind, each space and room responds directly to the desire to enhance the views and experiences offered.
Surrounded by exuberant vegetation, the terrace becomes the true heart of the project, creating an environment hard to imagine on the 56th floor of a corporate skyscraper. This space benefits from the triple height and corner location to surprise guests with a glazed atrium structure offering 270°views across the city.
Alternatively, the inner salon and dining room are enclosed within a vaulted structure built using wood stereotomy techniques, highlighted by gentle illumination, and fitted out with purpose-built furniture.
At the tail end of the Atrium, Ling Ling’s semi-private dining table can be found, rightfully named, Table Tres 60. Table Tres 60 accommodates up to 10 people offering 180-degree-plus views of the urban metropolis. The table is positioned within a unique corner of the restaurant and creates the feeling of ‘floating above the city’. Table Tres 60 is sure to become the most highly demanded table reservation in all of Mexico City.
Overlooking Ling Ling’s Atrium dining area is a larger-than-life original work-of-art mural hand painted by Mexican artist Paola Delfín. Named ‘Guardian of Nature’ and inspired by Xochitl the goddess of beauty, flowers and love, the mural represents the importance of diversity and a fusion of Asian and Mexican cultures. The main elements in the mural are agave and lotus flowers; plants of great importance both socially and spiritually for both cultures. These elements surround the main character, who is shown as a protector of nature, accompanying diners to enjoy this small natural oasis, in the middle of this bustling metropolis, Mexico City.
The client’s openness to ideas gave rise to a design process that included experimentation with the brand's logo, resulting in the creation of a wooden structure for the screen of the main lobby. This element is an example of how architectural design can become part of brand image.
About Sordo Madaleno
Sordo Madaleno is a pioneering studio with over 80 years of experience. For three generations, the firm has specialized in, and has been recognized for, the creation of one-of-a-kind, game-changing architectural, interior, and urban experiences. The Studio is anchored in the context of cultural, and is inspired to push boundaries.
The Studio is recognized for its deep commitment to excellence, and for its strategic planning producing fully integrated architectural solutions. The firm carefully evaluates urban context, social impact, and feasibility to go beyond the initial requirements and to enhance the distinctive characteristics of each project.
From award-winning architectural solutions to large-scale engineering and urban design projects, the Studio's vision focuses on improving the quality of life of users.