Ice Restaurant, Harbin Ice & Snow World Park

Architects: Architecture School, Harbin Institute of Technology, International Ice Snow Architecture Innovation Research Center
Restaurant Area: 554 m²
Park Area: 3,900 m²
Year: 2019
Photographs: Peng Luo, Shuxiang Wei, Shuoyong Yang, Yuxin Nie
Consultant: Harbin GuoZe Ice and Snow Culture Development Co. Ltd
Architect in Charge: Peng Luo
Design Team: Peng Luo, Yuxin Nie, Shuoyong Yang, Ruinan Zhang, Yongxin Liu
Client: Harbin Ice and Snow World Park Limited by Share Ltd
Engineering: Yue Wu, Jiafeng Chen, Junkai Huang, Xiuming Liu
Landscape: Peng Luo, Yuxin Nie
Collaborator: International Association for Shell and Spatial Structures, 21 Work Group
City: Harbin
Country: China

Ice Restaurant, designed by the Architecture School of Harbin Institute of Technology alongside the International Ice Snow Architecture Innovation Research Center, is a groundbreaking project within the Harbin Ice & Snow World Park in Harbin, China. This ice hot-pot restaurant spans 554 m² and features an innovative ice shell structure, completed in 2019. It combines architectural innovation with functional design, accommodating 40 diners in a space that merges structural safety with artistic ice and snow elements. Despite operating for just 35 days due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the project exemplifies the advanced use of ice in architectural design.

The Ice Restaurant project stands as China’s first complex ice shell structure designed for operational use. Located in the southwest corner of the Harbin Ice & Snow World Park, this restaurant is part of a larger 3,900 m² site. The site features an artificial lake to the west and a planned road to the south, with a distinctive steel Koi sculpture within the premises.

The investor’s objective was to create two innovative projects utilizing ice and snow while serving functional purposes. The Ice Restaurant, intended as a hot-pot dining venue, was one of these projects. Covering 554 m², the structure has a height of 7 meters and a span of 13 meters. The design required ensuring the building’s safety, accommodating 40 diners, and visually enhancing the park’s ice and snow landscape, making it a standout feature.

Leveraging extensive experience in ice and snow architecture, the design team integrated architectural, structural, and environmental considerations through digital modeling. They employed innovative technologies, such as joint exhaust ribs and paper fiber composite reinforced ice (pykrete) spraying, to achieve the design objectives.

The project exemplifies the fusion of architecture, structure, and art, exploring new possibilities in ice and snow architecture. The Ice Restaurant began operations on December 23rd, 2019, but due to the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, it closed on January 27th, 2020, after 35 days of operation. During this period, despite temperature fluctuations above 0°C, the ice shell maintained its structural integrity, ensuring the restaurant remained functional and visually impressive until its dismantling on March 22nd, 2020.