Elip Café, designed by architect Vo Trong Nghia in Go Vap District

Elip Café is a breath of fresh air in the concrete jungle.

Opened last August in Go Vap District, the café is similar to Nghia’s other famous cafes – Wind and Water and 1131 cafés in neighboring Binh Duong Province.

The café, made of some 10,000 bamboo shoots, is shaped like a giant ellipse, hence the name. In sticking with the theme, two ponds and a giant skylight are all oval-shaped.

Nghia has reputation for using all-natural materials.

Like his other cafés, Elip Café features a large pond in the center which acts as a natural air conditioner as wind passes across the water surface and circulates throughout the café.

The large pond creates a certain airiness in the café. When it’s still, the raised-pond looks like a sheet of glass or a mirror. When it rains, the sides of the pool become fountains as water slowly overflows.

An elliptical dome half-covers Elip Café’s atrium, with the large pond in the center. The reflection of the dome is striking in the pond.

To enter the cafe, customers walk across a rock bridge over the pond, which is home to a few fountains.

Elip Café also has an air-conditioned section, separated by glass walls, with plush sofas.

Upstairs is a traditional tea room with low tables.

Elip is open from 6:30 a.m.-11 p.m. everyyday. It serves a wide range of dishes and drinks and provides free wifi Internet service. It also serves office lunches.

Foods and drinks at Elip Café are priced at VND16,000- 32,000 (US$0.90-1.80) per serving.

The cafe is located at 530/23 Thong Nhat Street, Go Vap District.

Reported by Diem Thu