Valentín Brügger's QUINCHOPEL: A Rooftop Quincho Built from Secondhand Parts in Córdoba

Argentine architect Valentín Brügger has completed QUINCHOPEL, a 46-square-metre social pavilion for grilling and gathering atop the offices and warehouse of Opelmec, an electromechanical works company in Córdoba, Argentina. The project is notable for its use of entirely secondhand materials, all recovered from Opelmec's own past job sites: the roof beam, staircase geometry, and dining table are made from reclaimed galvanized structural and gas pipes, while a reused truss beam from a previous Brügger project supports the cantilevered kitchen. The pavilion sits on a side street off Av. Sabattini in an elevated mixed-use area, opening onto city views. Existing walls remain untouched, with rough exposed plaster left visible against new white surfaces. The design features two roof levels: a hall as an arrival point from the offices below, and above it the kitchen, grill, bathroom, and terrace. A site-line diagonal produces a triangular piece projecting over the sidewalk, with an opal acrylic canopy lighting the entrance; the same diagonal reappears in the staircase and the grill core. The kitchen opens north through a three-part glazed facade with a continuous awning. The project raises questions about scaling reuse methods beyond a company with surplus scrap, but for now, QUINCHOPEL stands as a small, specific pavilion completed in 2025.