![Floating Island Restaurant by C+ Architects](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2020/03/floating-island-restaurant-c-architects-china-architecture_dezeen_2364_hero-852x479.jpg)
C+ Architects perches glass restaurant above dramatic mountain landscape
Floating Island Restaurant by C+ Architects features a glazed dining room on stilts cantilevering from a hillside overlooking mountains in Chongquing, China.
Originally designed for the inaugural 2019 Wulong Lanba Land Art Festival, the restaurant is described by its creators as part-architecture, installation and exhibition.
![Floating Island Restaurant by C+ Architects](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2020/03/floating-island-restaurant-c-architects-china-architecture_dezeen_2364_col_9-852x479.jpg)
A footbridge with glazed balustrades leads from a winding mountain road to the venue.
To enter Floating Island Restaurant visitors pass through a glass-walled waiting lounge that looks back out across the road.
![Floating Island Restaurant by C+ Architects](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2020/03/floating-island-restaurant-c-architects-china-architecture_dezeen_2364_col_3-852x479.jpg)
"The behaviour of people crossing the bridge is more like a process of approaching the landscape and the mountains, paving the way for the subsequent experience of entering the interior of the building," said C+ Architects
While this guest area sits on the ground at the top of the slope, the rest of the structure extends outwards, supported by two concrete columns and ending in a seven-metre cantilever.
![Floating Island Restaurant by C+ Architects](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2020/03/floating-island-restaurant-c-architects-china-architecture_dezeen_2364_col_4-852x477.jpg)
C+ Architects designed Floating Island Restaurant as a blend of dining and a dramatic journey to the views.
"Chef Gilles Stassart specialises in blending food with social games to explore the relationship between people," explained the studio.
"Through several exchanges with Gilles, [we] clarified the design concept: using the architecture as a medium, with the help of the terrain, to guide the diners to experience the surrounding natural landscape while tasting the food."
![Floating Island Restaurant by C+ Architects](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2020/03/floating-island-restaurant-c-architects-china-architecture_dezeen_2364_col_0-852x479.jpg)
Once inside, two passages along either side of a central kitchen block create moments of compression.
The passages open out to reveal the dramatic dining space, with a large 16-seat table at its centre.
![Floating Island Restaurant by C+ Architects](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2020/03/floating-island-restaurant-c-architects-china-architecture_dezeen_2364_col_2-852x479.jpg)
"The sight of the diners, from the familiar scene of the park, through the transition of the middle passage, is finally settled in the pure valley landscape," added C + Architects.
"The central space of the restaurant is composed of functions such as the operating table, storage room, bathroom and equipment room, which also plays a role of blocking and diverting sight lines."
![Floating Island Restaurant by C+ Architects](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2020/03/floating-island-restaurant-c-architects-china-architecture_dezeen_2364_col_6-852x479.jpg)
The external cladding also works to execute this concept of a grand reveal.
A central portion of the restaurant covered with a white metal grille that offers glimpses outside, before giving way to a fully-glazed end section.
![Floating Island Restaurant by C+ Architects](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2020/03/floating-island-restaurant-c-architects-china-architecture_dezeen_2364_col_5-852x479.jpg)
This grille also creates a play of views from the outside, revealing those inside when viewed straight-on while appearing opaque from an angle.
"The aluminium alloy material on the facade can reflect the change of the weather to a certain extent," said the studio.
"From sunrise to dusk, the exterior colour of the building changes with time, and even merges with the white mist."
![Floating Island Restaurant by C+ Architects](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2020/03/floating-island-restaurant-c-architects-china-architecture_dezeen_2364_col_7-852x479.jpg)
White finishes and a wooden floor have been used to create a minimal interior, animated by the pattern of light and shadow created by the metal cladding.
While the building was designed for the festival, it will remain open for reservations.
![Floating Island Restaurant by C+ Architects](https://static.dezeen.com/uploads/2020/03/floating-island-restaurant-c-architects-china-architecture_dezeen_2364_col_8-852x479.jpg)
C+ Architects was founded by Cheng Yanchun and Li Nan in 2014.
A similar concept of blending dining with an experience was recently used by Studio Duncalf in their designs for the Alchemist restaurant in Copenhagen, featuring atmospheric, planetarium-style scenes projected on the ceiling.
Photography by Gao Tianxia
Project credits:
Design firm: C+ Architects
Architect in charge: Cheng Yanchun
Project team: Bo Chen, Cao Pengfei, Chen lvming, Liu Jianlong
Structural design: Zhang Jinbin, Tang Lida