The dining scene in Bucharest has been elevated by the arrival of Millo, a restaurant designed by the local studio AE02, led by Anda Zota and Elena Viziteu. Far from a conventional eatery, the designers set out to craft a “theatrical atmosphere” through a rich, sophisticated interplay of materials and light. Located on the ground floor of a contemporary building that tips its hat to Art Deco architecture, Millo’s interior is a dialogue between the timeless and the unique. Designers embraced high-gloss lacquered walnut walls and reflective microcement and terrazzo floors, establishing a backdrop of enduring elegance. Crucially, the lighting is not static; it is a dynamic performer, with a signature sculptural ceiling that shifts in colour to adjust the mood from daytime café to a pulsating nighttime event space. This meticulous attention to texture, light, and function transforms the simple act of dining into an immersive, carefully choreographed experience.
Glossy Theatre and Architectural Roots
The design philosophy for Millo was rooted in creating an atmosphere that is at once elevated and profoundly theatrical, a concept achieved primarily through a bold, high-gloss material palette. The designers utilized lacquered walnut wood to envelop the space, creating walls that are not merely partitions but reflective surfaces that catch and multiply the surrounding light. This high-gloss finish provides a sense of luxury and depth, subtly blurring the boundaries of the room and adding a dynamic, almost liquid dimension to the interior architecture. This choice of a warm-toned, reflective wood serves as a timeless base, ensuring the space feels both intimate and grand.
Significantly, the interior directly echoes and acknowledges the architecture of the contemporary building it inhabits, which draws inspiration from the local Art Deco movement. This connection is most evident in the elaborate floor treatment. The designers meticulously reinterpreted the geometric rhythm of the building’s facade columns, translating them into a combination of reflective microcement and cast-in-place terrazzo flooring. This careful application of pattern ensures the restaurant’s internal rhythm is in constant dialogue with its external shell, providing a sense of seamless continuity between the architecture and the interior design.
By opting for natural materials like walnut and terrazzo, the design duo ensured the palette would be both timeless and intrinsically interesting. The reflective microcement contributes a sleek, modern undercurrent, providing a lustrous foundation that mirrors the light. The layered materiality—from the rich, lacquered wood to the polished, geometric flooring—establishes the “story of materiality” that Millo’s design team sought to tell, ensuring every surface contributes to the overall immersive and dramatic narrative.
The Lava of Light and Adaptive Atmosphere
Light is deployed as the central artistic tool in Millo, serving not just to illuminate but to dramatically transform the restaurant’s character from hour to hour. The main dining area is dominated by a truly sculptural ceiling feature that the designers envisioned as a “volcano of light.” This architectural element emits a warm, orange, lava-like glow, creating a striking focal point that draws the eye and anchors the space. This singular piece of lighting design ensures the atmosphere is highly adaptable and responsive to the time of day and the nature of the event.
The ceiling feature’s light is dynamic, designed to subtly shift its colour temperature throughout the evening, transitioning from a soft, ambient yellow suitable for daytime dining, through to a vibrant orange, and finally culminating in a deep red. This careful, programmed evolution creates a physical transformation of the space, moving the mood from a relaxed cafe setting to a more intense, high-energy environment ideal for nightlife and events. LED strip lighting is strategically placed at the base of the ceiling slopes, serving to accentuate the room’s geometry and highlight the varied textures, ensuring the subtle interplay of light and shadow is never lost.
Beyond its atmospheric role, the bold, geometric ceiling feature also performs a vital functional task. The design was conceived in direct response to the poor acoustics encountered in the original, unfurnished space. By creating a complex, sculpted form with a varied surface, the ceiling actively mitigates sound issues. It helps diffuse and absorb sound waves, ensuring that even as the lighting shifts and the energy level rises, the conversation remains clear and the background music is perfectly balanced, proving that the most dramatic design element is also one of the most practical.
Anchors of Stone and Custom Craftsmanship
The furniture and fixtures within Millo were deliberately chosen and custom-designed to act as solid anchors against the room’s fluid, reflective surfaces. At the centre of the restaurant, a custom-made, rounded terrazzo dining table serves as the primary gathering point. The choice of terrazzo—a material celebrated for its durability and rich, composite texture—introduces a necessary counterweight to the extensive high-gloss wood and reflective flooring, bringing a grounding element of natural stone to the core of the dining area.
A second, informal space towards the rear of the restaurant features a cocktail table, also crafted from terrazzo. This surface is intentionally pigmented in a warm reddish tone, creating a deliberate and harmonious contrast with the dominant walnut walls. Running along the length of this table is an angular aluminum lamp, a striking piece of metalwork created by local designer Andrei Arion. The lamp’s sharp, geometric form contrasts beautifully with the rounded nature of the table and the sinuous curves created by the dynamic lighting, adding a layer of precise, contemporary sculpture to the area.
The bar area itself is a masterclass in functional elegance and material wealth, constructed with striking stainless steel details and opulent Cherry Levanto marble. This area provides not only a service point but also a showcase for the luxurious, warm-toned stone. The cohesive use of high-end materials—terrazzo, walnut, marble, and stainless steel—throughout the key communal surfaces reinforces the restaurant’s commitment to meticulous detailing and ensures a seamless, luxurious flow across the entirety of the main floor.
The Art of Concealment and Contrast
A hallmark of Millo’s sophisticated design is the thoughtful integration and subtle concealment of its high-tech, nocturnal functions. The bar, finished in stainless steel and Cherry Levanto marble, discreetly houses a small DJ booth and a bespoke sound system by the Finnish audio company Genelec. These elements are ingeniously hidden beneath a removable wooden cover, ensuring they remain entirely invisible during regular dining hours. This design move allows the space to retain its polished, elegant restaurant identity by day, while providing a seamless, almost instantaneous transition to a fully equipped event and party venue by night.
The designers also played skilfully with the dynamic of contrast, particularly between public and private spaces. Towards the back of the restaurant, a textured glass cut-out is embedded within the wood-panelled wall, framed by a precise, geometric stainless-steel panel. This is not a conventional window but an artistic device. The textured glass obscures direct vision into the kitchen, instead offering only glimpses of silhouetted movement. This playful visual element adds a dynamic dimension to the reflective surfaces, engaging the guests’ curiosity and highlighting the activity of the restaurant’s operational heart while maintaining a sense of mystique and order in the dining room.
This careful interplay of light, shadow, and reflection is a key contributor to the overall theatrical atmosphere. The high-gloss surfaces intentionally echo silhouettes and the movement of light, adding a layer of visual complexity and making the space feel alive. The juxtaposition of hard, reflective metal and wood against the soft, diffused light and the blurred shapes of the kitchen is a testament to the meticulous attention to detail that underpins the entire project.
Timelessness in the Details
The design conviction established in the main dining area is consistently carried through into the smaller, supporting spaces, demonstrating a comprehensive vision for the entire project. The material palette—dominated by the rich, cherry-toned marble—finds its continuation in the bathrooms, creating a sense of total immersion within the design’s aesthetic world. Here, Cherry Levanto marble is used for both the walls and the sinks, providing a continuous surface of luxury and warmth.
This classic material is contrasted with crisp stainless-steel light fixtures and details, echoing the metal accents found in the main bar area. The commitment to a restrained yet opulent palette, focusing on a deep tonal range of wood and stone, ensures the space achieves the designers’ goal of being both “timeless and interesting.” Every detail, from the geometric rhythm of the floor to the bespoke modular seating, has been chosen to contribute to a coherent, sensory-rich narrative. Millo is not just a renovation; it is a meticulously crafted destination that uses architecture and light to transform a conventional restaurant into a dramatic and enduring experience.
