KRUNGTHEP THAI STREET FOOD
- May 7
- 2 min read
Bringing Thai Street Food Culture to New Zealand
Category : F&B
Design by : Collective Studio
Location : Taugura , New Zealand
“We’ve always dreamed of designing a Thai restaurant overseas someday…”
Well, that “someday” finally arrived.
Even though it may be a small restaurant, it still represents an important milestone for us—a Thai restaurant project designed beyond our region for the very first time.
This project is located within the western dining zone of Tauranga Crossing, one of the major shopping destinations in Tauranga, a coastal city neighboring the beautiful Bay of Plenty on New Zealand’s North Island.
The overall shopping center was designed to reflect the authentic lifestyle and culture of the local community—celebrating regional identity, festivals, tourism, and the relaxed atmosphere of Bay of Plenty living.
The mall combines international retail brands with locally produced businesses, blending energy, convenience, and open-air relaxation into a vibrant shopping environment.
Thai Food in New Zealand
New Zealand already has many Thai restaurants, especially in cities with growing Thai communities. However, most Thai restaurants operate as standalone businesses because opening inside a major shopping mall overseas often involves far more complex requirements, documentation, and operational standards.
That is what made this project particularly meaningful.
Krungthep Thai Street Food had already received recognition in Auckland for two consecutive years, leading Tauranga Crossing to invite the restaurant into the mall as one of its featured food tenants.
For the restaurant owner, this became a proud achievement—a reflection that even a small Thai business could develop high enough standards and a strong enough identity to gain international trust and recognition.
Design Concept
The brand already possessed a strong visual identity through its graphics, logo, and street-food-inspired personality.
Our role was not to completely reinvent the restaurant, but to refine and elevate it into a cleaner and more cohesive spatial experience suitable for an international retail environment.
We selected materials that subtly communicate the atmosphere of authentic Thai street food culture:
Wooden wall cladding inspired by traditional Thai wooden houses
Street lamps and intentionally exposed electrical wiring reminiscent of Bangkok streets
Warm textures and layered details that immediately evoke the feeling of Thailand
The open kitchen at the back of the restaurant allows customers to watch chefs preparing food in real time, creating an atmosphere that feels fresh, energetic, and inviting.
At the same time, the kitchen was carefully designed for cleanliness, durability, and ease of maintenance, while decorative tile accents were introduced to prevent the space from feeling overly minimal.
The restaurant itself contains only a small number of seats, but it directly connects to the shared food court dining area in front, creating a flexible and social dining experience.
A Small Restaurant with Big Meaning
The Collective Studio is deeply proud to have been part of this project.
Although it may be physically small, it represents something much larger:
A first step for Thai restaurants inside New Zealand shopping malls. And an important first step for our studio in expanding design work internationally beyond our home region.
We hope this is only the beginning of many more journeys to come.
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The Collective Studio Co., Ltd.
Architecture & Interior Design
www.ctstu.com
Tel. 094 442 4652
Email: collectivetalk@gmail.com
