Restaurant: The restaurant is the fourth building designed by Play Arquitetura that completes the ensemble around Lagar Oliq. This ensemble consists of the olive oil production facility (2013 | 2014), the Service Annex (2016 | 2017), and the Restaurant (2019 | 2021). In addition to the three main structures, we also designed a small plant nursery located nearby.
It is important to describe the design history of each stage to understand them separately and as a whole. As a new activity for the owners, there was no initial plan for the construction of all three stages. Only with the need for the second construction, the Annex, did the desire for a future restaurant on the site begin to take shape.
Lagar: In 2013, we designed a small shed for extracting olive oil from the olives produced at Santo Antônio Farm and by other small farmers in the region. The production had previously relied on EPAMIG's machinery in Maria da Fé, MG.
With a functional character and referencing other service buildings already existing on the farm (corral and material storage), characterized by a gabled roof with painted eaves and gutters in bold colors, this project explores the extensive roof resulting from the linear distribution of the program. Beneath it, we distinguish a wooden box isolating various functions, including the extraction area, filling, office, storage, and bathroom.
Still under the roof but occupying the open areas, we placed the olive cleaning machine (initial function of the process) at one end and a large table for olive oil tasting (final function of the process) at the other. The eaves and trusses that make up the wooden roof structure were painted dark green.
Service Annex: After a few years of activity, the need arose to build an annex to accommodate functions such as bottled olive oil storage, office, kitchen for artisanal jam production, packaging storage, and customer bathrooms.
We proposed the construction of a more hermetic volume, with the same measurements and proportions as the wooden box of the Lagar, occupying the lateral and rear areas of the land. This area allowed a connection to a new road for service flow, to be created simultaneously with the Annex. This new 'box', perfectly aligned with the wooden box, was built with a concrete and masonry structure, creating a terrace with a panoramic view of the olive grove.
Taking advantage of the terrain's slope and the thermal advantages of a semi-buried construction, we proposed an underground space for olive oil storage. The annex is connected to the Lagar by a wooden pergola covered with glass.
Oliq Restaurant: By this point, its implementation was already planned for the front end of the Lagar, where there was a large uncovered terrace overlooking the valley and the olive grove. In addition to the aesthetic qualities of this location, the topography favored the construction of a lower level, connected to the annex and service access. The architecture consists of two main volumes separated by a covered pergola that provides access to the restaurant and shop: a lower volume where the tasting room is located, and a semi-buried base where dressing rooms, storage, cold rooms, and support kitchen are located.
While the lower part was covered with local stones, the upper volumes were roughly plastered and painted with the same dark green used in the Lagar. In addition to the enclosed areas, we proposed a north-facing balcony and an uncovered terrace overlooking the valley and mountains. On the west side, wooden louvers cover the windows, allowing control of sunlight. It is worth noting the excellent workmanship - both in civil construction (structure, masonry, installations, and finishes) and in carpentry and metalwork - carried out by professionals from the region.
At the beginning of the restaurant's construction, we were asked to design a small plant nursery. We proposed a carousel of wooden slats, with an autonomous and lightweight form, independent of the others.