Penthouse Puebla

​Some projects begin with a need. Others begin with a view.

Penthouse Puebla began with both.

Located at the top of a residential building in the historic center of Puebla, just a few blocks from the city’s Cathedral, this compact penthouse was conceived as a quiet retreat above the city. A place to arrive after the energy and intensity of Mexico City, close the door, and allow life to move at a different pace.

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From the beginning, the height of the apartment and its connection to the landscape became the true protagonists of the design. In one direction, the towers of Puebla Cathedral rise above the surrounding rooftops. In another, the city opens toward warm sunsets, and on clear days, the volcanoes surrounding Puebla appear on the horizon.

The interior architecture was designed not to compete with these views, but to frame them.

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Arriving and Leaving the City Behind

The entry into the penthouse creates a transition between the movement of the city outside and a much calmer atmosphere within.

The layout was designed to feel open, continuous, and filled with natural light from the moment you enter. Unnecessary walls were avoided so that the social spaces flow naturally into one another and the eye can travel across the apartment toward the city beyond.

The intention is simple: to enter and immediately feel that the space can breathe.

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A Living Room Facing Puebla

The living room occupies one of the most privileged areas of the penthouse.

Large windows turn the cityscape into part of the interior experience. During the day, natural light moves across the space and changes the way materials and textures are perceived. Toward sunset, the room becomes a place of quiet observation as the sky shifts in color and the lights of Puebla slowly begin to appear.

More than a room for entertaining, it was designed as a place to pause.

A place to read, talk, rest, or simply watch the city from above.

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The Dining Area as a Gathering Place

The dining area sits naturally between the living room and the kitchen, creating one continuous social space.

There are no rigid boundaries between cooking, eating, and spending time together. A dinner can begin around the kitchen island, move to the dining table, and end near the windows without ever interrupting the conversation.

And in Puebla, food is inseparable from the story of the city.

This is a place where a simple dinner can become an experience shaped by local traditions: mole poblano, chiles en nogada, cemitas, chalupas, and the region’s well-known traditional sweets.

The architecture supports those everyday rituals—a table being set, a long conversation, and an evening that is allowed to unfold slowly.

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The Kitchen as the Heart of the Home

The kitchen sits at the center of the project.

A large island organizes the space, clearly defining the kitchen while keeping it visually connected to the living and dining areas.

From here, someone can prepare a meal while talking to guests, serve drinks as the sun begins to set, or start the morning while looking out toward the city.

The kitchen was imagined not only as a functional space, but as one of the main gathering points of the home.

It is also where contemporary living can connect with local culture.

A pitcher of agua fresca—traditional Mexican fruit water made with ingredients such as hibiscus, tamarind, lime, or seasonal fruit—might sit on the island during a warm afternoon. Later in the evening, friends might share a glass of pulque, a traditional fermented drink made from the agave plant.

Pulque has been consumed in central Mexico for centuries and is often poetically described as the “nectar of the gods,” a reference to its deep roots in pre-Hispanic culture.

In this way, the kitchen becomes more than a room. It becomes a place where contemporary design, hospitality, and cultural memory meet.

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Two Bedrooms for Rest

The two bedrooms are located in the quieter portion of the penthouse.

After the openness of the social areas, these rooms offer a different atmosphere: privacy, calm, and rest.

The architecture becomes more intimate. Light is softer, materials feel warmer, and the spaces are reduced to what is essential.

They are designed as places to disconnect from the activity outside and recover from the pace of the day.

Both bedrooms share a bathroom that follows the same approach—clean, understated, and functional, with materials and lighting selected to create a calm and timeless environment.

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A Private Terrace Above the City

Perhaps the most memorable space in the project is outside.

The private terrace completely changes the experience of the penthouse.

Open to the sky, it was designed for slow mornings, outdoor dinners, conversations with friends, and evenings spent watching Puebla change color as the sun goes down.

Here, architecture becomes experience.

A table with local food, a pitcher of hibiscus or tamarind agua fresca, a glass of wine, or a small serving of pulque can turn an ordinary evening into something memorable.

From this point, the relationship with the city becomes immediate.

The breeze, changing temperature, distant sounds, and movement of the clouds all become part of the space.

At certain moments, the Cathedral is visible in the distance. On clear days, the volcanoes create a dramatic backdrop beyond the city.

It is the place where the penthouse stops feeling like an apartment and begins to feel like a private retreat suspended above Puebla.

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A Home Between Two Cities

Penthouse Puebla was designed for a client whose professional life is centered in Mexico City.

Because of that, the project was never intended to reproduce the speed of a major metropolis.

It was designed as its opposite.

A place where time can feel slower.

Where cooking, reading, resting, or sharing dinner is enough.

Where architecture, landscape, and food come together to create a deeper connection to Puebla.

Because experiencing a city is not only about seeing it.

It is also about tasting it, listening to it, and understanding its traditions.

It is walking through the historic center, returning home with traditional sweets, sharing a cemita for lunch, or ending the day on the terrace while the sky changes over the distant volcanoes.

At only 100 square meters, Penthouse Puebla shows that a sense of generosity does not depend only on size.

It comes from light.

From views.

From connection.

From the rituals of daily life.

And above all, from designing every square meter with intention.

Penthouse Puebla is a quiet pause above the city—a place from which to see Puebla, taste it, experience it, and for a moment, simply let time pass.