Gyula Culinary Centre

University of Pécs, Pollack Mihály Faculty of Technology, Pécs, Hungary

Project idea

My diploma project, the Gyula Culinary Centre, proposes a complex architectural intervention on the outskirts of the city of Gyula. At the heart of the project is the former slaughterhouse complex, built in 1892, which has been listed as a historical monument and has been in a special situation over the past decades. Once free-standing on the corner of the fairground, it now finds itself squeezed between shopping centres, petrol stations and car parks, struggling to maintain its role in the urban fabric. Today, a small part of the complex serves as a museum of the history of the meat industry in Gyula, preserving the rich cultural heritage of the place.
The aim of the project is to reinterpret and revitalise this historic site, creating a contemporary gastronomic and cultural centre that not only respects the place's past but also breathes new life into it. The project will focus on preserving the world-famous Gyula sausage tradition and placing it in a modern context, combining its culinary heritage with 21st century architecture.
While designing the Culinary Centre in Gyula, I paid particular attention to the need to create new functions and spaces, while responding to the current challenges of the site. The aim is to create a building complex that both turns away from the surrounding modern commercial facilities, creating an intimate, inward-looking space, as well as opening up to the surrounding green spaces, reconnecting with the urban fabric.

Project description

Concept and functions

The design concept is based on two main pillars:
• Reimagining the existing Sausage Museum
• Expanding the functions of the building complex
The new Culinary Centre will include the following main functions:
A sausage-making workshop: located in one of the wings of the main building of the former slaughterhouse, where visitors will be able to learn about the traditional sausage-making process and try it for themselves.
Restaurant and kitchen: located in the other wing of the main building and in a new extension. The restaurant offers a selection of products from the workshop and other local specialities.
Café and butcher's shop: located in the former stable building and its extension, also accessible from the street.
Internal walkway: formed by the connecting section between the two parallel buildings, provides a pleasant area for walking and relaxing, as well as an external consumption area for the café and restaurant.
Existing exhibition reimagined: the building currently used as the Sausage Museum has been retained, but restored to its near-original state, so that it can function as a kind of memorial house.

Technical information

Historical Background

The site of the project is the former slaughterhouse complex, built in 1892, which is still standing today and partly houses the Gyula Sausage Museum. This group of buildings in the historicist style played a key role in the development of the meat industry in Gyula and is still a dominant feature of the townscape. The building complex consists of three main parts: the former slaughterhouse, the stables and the inspector's apartment.

Architectural Character

One of the most important aspects of the design is to create contrast and harmony between old and new architectural elements. The concept uses three different extension scenarios:
1. linking two parallel buildings: a contemporary, glass-fronted building mass, subordinate to the existing buildings.
2. extension of a former stable block: a steel and glass extension that adapts to the proportions of the historicised building.
3. Exterior roofing: Steel-framed grid roofing between the two existing buildings, with flexible adjustable shading.
The glass façades and steel frames of the new parts of the building contrast with the solid walls and curved windows of the existing brick buildings. At the same time, the scale and proportions of the new elements respect the dominance of the historic wings.
A particular feature of the design are the brick chimneys placed at two opposite corners of the site. They are not only functional but also symbolic:
• One of the chimneys acts as a smokehouse for sausage making, a direct reference to the new gastronomic function.
• The other chimney is connected to an outdoor oven, which is located under the external roof, allowing for outdoor cooking and baking.
These chimneys form a kind of framed installation, visually linking the old and new parts of the building, while also referring back to the industrial past of the complex. The chimneys are a symbol of the new sausage-making function, reinforcing the gastronomic identity of the centre.

Materials and details

The use of materials has been a key consideration in the design:
• The characteristic brick architecture of the existing buildings is preserved.
• Glass, steel and concrete surfaces in the new parts of the building give an industrial aesthetic.
• The chimneys are made of black burnt brick, creating a unity between the existing brick buildings and the new dark steel structures.
This use of materials allows the design to respect the historic character of the buildings while incorporating contemporary architectural solutions. The black burnt brick chimneys play a particularly important role in this unity, creating a visual bridge between past and present.

Urban context

The plan aims not only to renew the complex, but also to better integrate it into the urban fabric:
• The creation of a new north-west-south-east axis that connects the pedestrian system of the neighbourhood.
• Improve the green spaces nearby, creating a coherent green space system.
• Reducing the sense of enclosure caused by the adjacent petrol station and hypermarket.
The plan successfully addresses the challenge of turning away from the surrounding hypermarket and petrol station, turning inwards to create an intimate space focused on gastronomic experiences, while opening up to the surrounding green spaces. This dual approach allows the Culinary Centre to be both a protected, pleasant environment and an integral part of the urban fabric.

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