Restaurant-pizzeria Oi Marì in a historical cave

Restaurant-pizzeria Oi Marì in a historical cave

The restaurant-pizzeria Oi Marì is located in the heart of Matera, a historical city in Italy known for its cave houses. The architects from Manca Studio worked on the design of the space carved out of the rock, just like the rest of the old town, which is a UNESCO World Heritage site. The project cost 450,000€.

The restaurant space is naturally zoned due to the differences in shape and size of the cave sections. The client wanted to clear the old space of all unnecessary elements, focusing on several key functional features. At the entrance, there is a reception counter and a small bar welcoming visitors, followed by a series of rooms of various sizes. The largest hall features a wine cellar that can accommodate over 2,000 bottles. The bottles are placed in existing niches and separated from the hall by a glass and metal construction. This is truly a jewel of the project.

All furniture, metal structures, and lighting fixtures were fully designed by the architects and made by local craftsmen. The lighting fixtures, inspired by dough cutters, act as a connecting element between the old and new, between past traditions and future vision. These dough cutters are not whole but halved, a form that both remembers traditions and reinterprets them with new functions. Additionally, thin rods made of corten steel appear throughout the interior, transforming to serve various purposes.

Designers from Manca Studio attempted to reinterpret the philosophy of the restaurant owners in an architectural context, using high-quality simple materials to create harmonious relationships between old and new, evoking a desire not to make noise in a place that sometimes seems sacred.