Mili Wine Bar founders are a successful technology couple who have travelled the world (with wine as their muse) and decided to turn that passion into a local wine bar in San Francisco. While wine is their passion, they are first-time industry owners. They engaged Studio BBA for our expertise in creating well-loved, successful food and beverage places across the Bay Area.

We guided the client throughout the process: curating a fantastic consultant team, navigating Landlord approvals, designing a beautiful, functional bar in exceptionally small footprint, and developing a future outdoor bar experience.

The client asked for a friendly, well-appointed, neighborhood gathering place that enables connection, debate and discussion while enjoying excellent curated wines from across the globe.

In response, we anchored the tiny space with a huge zinc bar. Zinc is a warm, soft grey and malleable (double bubble edge detail) material that carries the history of use over time. It is both timely and timeless and has been used in bars all over the world – and as such resonated with the global wine offerings of the bar.

Tables are tucked into the angled niches along the storefront edges. Saturated moments of rust and azure accents provide pops of color and texture to an overall calm and quite palette. As having a gathering place for stories and debate (critical to a functional democracy) was tantamount, we carefully crafted an acoustic environment (within a glass and concrete shell) to allow for non-shouting conversation: cork floors, tectum ceilings, full height wine display shelves (with nooks and crannies to dissipate sound waves) and acoustic curtains.

Situated on the corner near the Bay, Mili is a billboard to the bay with stunning views of the Bay Bridge.