Traditional Sichuan & Taiwanese Meets Modern Flair

DanDan’s third location in Philadelphia presented a unique challenge: transforming an existing restaurant space in a challenging location into a beautiful and hip space while celebrating the owner’s Sichuan and Taiwanese heritage.

Strada’s human-centric design approach focused on rethinking circulation and program to create a series of unique dining experiences, including a warm and sophisticated bar, a bright sunlit private dining room, a colorful primary dining room, and an exterior dining patio overlooking Suburban Square.

Our design solution celebrated the restaurant’s best feature, the skylit atrium, by making it the centerpiece of the design rather than the waiting area. We outfitted the kitchen with 10 new woks and reimagined the dining room and atrium with new finishes, lighting, and a transparent steel-framed glass wall. Despite the challenges of a tight budget and timeline, as well as constructing the restaurant during the pandemic, our team delivered a space that maintains the DanDan brand while offering a new and unique dining experience.

Restaurants provide opportunities to escape the drudgery of the everyday. DanDan's Ardmore location, at the literal heart of the wildly popular Suburban Square, is no exception. The light-filled space provides subtle nods to the Taiwanese and Szechuan cuisine of DanDan in a sophisticated and hip environment

George Poulin Strada Principal

DanDan Ardmore opened to rave reviews and has become the centerpiece of the Suburban Square dining scene.

DanDan Client