Case Study: Rocku Yakiniku — Charcoal Grill Restaurant, Kuala Lumpur

The Situation

Rocku Yakiniku is a Japanese charcoal grill restaurant offering an immersive dining experience — combining traditional yakiniku cuisine with live band performances and entertainment events. Located in one of Kuala Lumpur's most popular shopping malls, the venue sits in close proximity to other retail tenants, common areas, and shoppers.

The live music programme created a significant acoustic challenge: ensuring the energy and atmosphere that made the venue special stayed inside — while keeping sound levels for neighbouring tenants and mall common areas within acceptable limits.

The Challenge

Live band performances generate high sound pressure levels. In a shopping mall environment, sound transmission to adjacent tenants and public corridors is tightly regulated. The venue needed to deliver a great live experience for its diners without triggering noise complaints from neighbours or breaching mall management's acoustic requirements.

The additional complexity: the restaurant's interior design was already partially established. Any acoustic solution needed to work within the existing spatial and aesthetic constraints — with minimal disruption to the venue's visual concept.

The Solution

Novico Engineering's team collaborated with IR Chua, a renowned acoustic specialist, to deliver a comprehensive acoustic advisory programme for the venue. Our team conducted detailed sound measurement assessments to quantify noise levels and identify the primary transmission pathways — the walls, ceiling connections, and openings through which sound was escaping into adjacent spaces.

Based on the measurement data, we specified the placement of rockwool acoustic insulation at key locations within the restaurant's wall and ceiling construction. Rockwool was selected for its high sound absorption coefficient, fire resistance, and suitability for retrofit installation within existing wall and ceiling cavities — making it ideal for a live venue that could not afford extended closure for works.

We worked alongside the interior designers to ensure the material placements were integrated seamlessly into the existing design — maintaining the restaurant's atmosphere while delivering measurable noise reduction at the boundaries.

The Results

Following installation of the recommended acoustic treatments, sound leakage from the venue to adjacent mall tenants was successfully reduced to within acceptable limits. Rocku Yakiniku continues to operate its live entertainment programmed without disruption to neighboring businesses — and without compromising the dining atmosphere its customers come for.

Key takeaway: Great acoustic design isn't about silencing a space — it's about keeping the right sounds in the right places. For Rocku Yakiniku, the goal was to let the restaurant roar inside, while staying a good neighbour outside.