The hoardings had barely come off its 113-room The Chow Kit before the Ormond Group was already prepping for the close up of its 99-room MoMo’s around the corner.
The conceit here is the micro-room whose no-frills approach is compensated by Sydney-based studio Akin Atelier’s quirky approach to stacking beds and use of blond timber accent panels, recessed lighting that add depth, raised nooks for slide-away storage, and a light pink palette. The best rooms in the house look out over the Chow Kit neighbourhood, though even the internal rooms feature plenty of natural light thanks to the capacious air-well that cuts through the building’s core.
If it’s not already clear, the bedrooms are designed to be base-camps for sleep and changes of outfits, and not much else. Instead, the draw comes from the public spaces which Ormond and Akin have conceived as lively internal piazzas spruced up by a casual self-serve bar stocked with Mexican fare, snacks and cocktails and which, by night, turns into an ironically self-aware dive fueled by live music, barbecued corn on the cob, tacos and churros.
Equally attractive draws are the titular Chow Kit street market and buzzy Jalan Sultan Ismail neighbourhood just minutes away on foot.§
