Budapest Post

Cum Deo pro Patria et Libertate
Budapest, Europe and world news

A Chef Builds a Family Home and Restaurant Under One Roof in Spain’s Basque Country

A Chef Builds a Family Home and Restaurant Under One Roof in Spain’s Basque Country

After an in-house meal, guests can stay the night at the renovated farmhouse, which is designed as an agritourism escape.

At Caserío Azkarraga, the tranquility of nature sets the tone. It’s quite a change for chef Fernando González, who, after living for several years between Ukraine, Denmark, and Asia, was running two restaurants in the center of Bilbao, Spain. Ready for a new chapter, he and his wife and business partner, Kateryna Overko, decided to decamp to the Basque countryside to raise their three children and open a new restaurant with a few rooms for guests.



The couple contacted Babel Studio and Bonadona Arquitectura, both based in Bilbao, to commission a complete reconstruction of a 19th-century farmhouse that was in ruins. "The project presented an opportunity to restore a typical landscape by removing all conflicting architectural features," says Michael Schmidt, director of Babel Studio.



The architects were able to recover the building’s three-foot-high stone walls, but the rest of the remaining wooden structure was too degraded and had to be removed. In its place they designed a new volume using pine from the trees on the plot. The wood was stained black and wrapped around the existing stone walls.



"The design presents itself as contemporary and minimalist, integrating itself into the context of the traditional farmhouses in its neighborhood," says Schmidt. "The black facade references, on one hand, the client’s time in Denmark and Japan, and on the other tends to blend with the nearby natural and built surroundings."



Inside, the family’s main living area-a double-height, open-plan space with sliding doors that open to the garden-shares the ground floor with the restaurant. Dividing it from the home’s private spaces is an in situ concrete wall at the center of the design. The family’s sleeping quarters are located in a volume that extends from one side of the building, which includes a smaller upper level that hosts four guest suites and a lounge area for the agritourism business.



"Simplicity in shape, materials, and color guided the design of the interior spaces," says Schmidt. The bucolic landscape "extends to the interior through the big scale openings," the architect adds, adding visual interest.


AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
France Faces New Political Crisis, again, as Prime Minister Bayrou Pushed Out
Nayib Bukele Points Out Belgian Hypocrisy as Brussels Considers Sending Army into the Streets
France, at an Impasse, Heads Toward Another Government Collapse
The Country That Got Too Rich? Public Spending Dominates Norway Election
EU Proposes Phasing Out Russian Oil and Gas by End of 2027 to End Energy Dependence
More Than 150,000 Followers for a Fictional Character: The New Influencers Are AI Creations
EU Prepares for War
Trump Threatens Retaliatory Tariffs After EU Imposes €2.95 Billion Fine on Google
Tesla Board Proposes Unprecedented One-Trillion-Dollar Performance Package for Elon Musk
Gold Could Reach Nearly $5,000 if Fed Independence Is Undermined, Goldman Sachs Warns
Uruguay, Colombia and Paraguay Secure Places at 2026 World Cup
Trump Administration Advances Plans to Rebrand Pentagon as Department of War Instead of the Fake Term Department of Defense
Big Tech Executives Laud Trump at White House Dinner, Unveil Massive U.S. Investments
Tether Expands into Gold Sector with Profit-Driven Diversification
‘Looks Like a Wig’: Online Users Express Concern Over Kate Middleton
Florida’s Vaccine Revolution: DeSantis Declares War on Mandates
Trump’s New War – and the ‘Drug Tyrant’ Fearing Invasion: ‘1,200 Missiles Aimed at Us’
"The Situation Has Never Been This Bad": The Fall of PepsiCo
At the Parade in China: Laser Weapons, 'Eagle Strike,' and a Missile Capable of 'Striking Anywhere in the World'
The Fashion Designer Who Became an Italian Symbol: Giorgio Armani Has Died at 91
Putin Celebrates ‘Unprecedentedly High’ Ties with China as Gazprom Seals Power of Siberia-2 Deal
China Unveils New Weapons in Grand Military Parade as Xi Hosts Putin and Kim
Rapper Cardi B Cleared of Liability in Los Angeles Civil Assault Trial
Google Avoids Break-Up in U.S. Antitrust Case as Stocks Rise
Couple celebrates 80th wedding anniversary at assisted living facility in Lancaster
Information Warfare in the Age of AI: How Language Models Become Targets and Tools
The White House on LinkedIn Has Changed Their Profile Picture to Donald Trump
"Insulted the Prophet Muhammad": Woman Burned Alive by Angry Mob in Niger State, Nigeria
Trump Responds to Death Rumors – Announces 'Missile City'
Druzhba Pipeline Incident Sparks Geopolitical Tensions
Cost of Opposition Leader Péter Magyar's Economic Plan Revealed
Germany in Turmoil: Ukrainian Teenage Girl Pushed to Death by Illegal Iraqi Migrant
United Krack down on human rights: Graham Linehan Arrested at Heathrow Over Three X Posts, Hospitalised, Released on Bail with Posting Ban
Asian and Middle Eastern Investors Avoid US Markets
Ray Dalio Warns of US Shift to Autocracy
Eurozone Inflation Rises to 2.1% in August
Russia and China Sign New Gas Pipeline Deal
Von der Leyen's Plane Hit by Suspected Russian GPS Interference in an Incident Believed to Be Caused by Russia or by Pro-Peace or by Anti-Corruption European Activists
China's Robotics Industry Fuels Export Surge
Suntory Chairman Resigns After Police Probe
Gold Price Hits New All-Time Record
UK Fintechs Explore Buying US Banks
Greece Suspends 5% of Schools as Birth Rate Drops
Apollo to Launch $5 Billion Sports Investment Vehicle
Bolsonaro Trial Nears Close Amid US-Brazil Tension
European Banks Push for Lower Cross-Border Barriers
Poland's Offshore Wind Sector Attracts Investors
Budapest Central European Fashion Week Kicks Off
U.S. Celebrates Labor Day
Hungarian National Team Captain Scores Epic Goal
×