hong kong tramways

Challenge

Trams have been a part of Hong Kong’s urban landscape for over a century. They form an integral part of the city and the lives of Hong Kongers. We were asked to turn one of these iconic double decker trams into a moving restaurant to accommodate a sitting of 30 guests at one time while allowing for wait staff.

Convert a decommissioned tram destined for scrap into a restaurant
Had to have capacity for 30 guests and 4 wait staff
Transport department safety standards had to be met
Design and build had to be completed in 3 weeks

Solution

The Eatery Tram was designed and built over an intense 3 weeks. The greatest challenge was to turn the small space into a dining room for such a large number of people. With this in mind we fitted the tram out with bench seating and a long banquet table with two smaller seating areas at either end of the tram to allow for greater flexibility. Blond wood and light coloured flooring was chosen to give the illusion of spaciousness. Warm even LED lighting replaced the original harsh fluorescent lighting softening the tram’s ambience and creating an even greater feeling of space by diffusing light off the white trussed ceiling and installing underseat lighting. Original features such as the tram’s original teak frame and brass fittings were cleaned up and emphasized to create a sublime experience.

Completely gut the tram's interior
Repaint ceiling and restore original brass fittings and teak frame
Lay new flooring
Custom build and manufacture bench seating for max capacity
Rewire the tram and install LED lighting to replace fluorescents

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Featured

An Iconic Part of the Landscape

Trams are an integral part of Hong Kong’s urban landscape. They are a real part of day to day life in the city.

Stripped Down

We were given a completely stripped down tram as a blank slate. We started from scratch, repainting the ceiling and ceiling and laying down new flooring.

Restored Features

Time and care was taken to protect, clean and highlight the tram's original teak frame and brass fittings.

A Soft Touch

LED lights replaced original fluorescent tubes softening the mood and making better use of the tram's weak electrical supply. This lighting is now slowly being implemented in all trams in Hong Kong.

Flexible Seating Plan

A seating plan had to be made to accommodate a large sitting and wait staff. This all had to be planned around the existing structure.

Kitchen Access

Seating was divided by existing stairwells allowing meals to be served and dishes to be cleared easily by a small wait staff.

Outcome

The Eatery Tram was a huge success. It was solidly booked out for the two weeks that it ran. Hong Kong Tramways has taken our design as a cue to make sensitive modernisations to the tram system; the lighting arrangement which we created for the eatery tram is slowly replacing the fluorescent lighting in all trams across Hong Kong.

Design was brilliantly executed
Restaurant solidly booked for entire event
Generated favourable press
Aspects of design have been applied across all trams