Baciccia: Reinventing a Historic Venue in Piacenza

From a former cattle stable to an urban botanical garden

When we were asked to rethink Baciccia, we immediately understood this would be both a beautiful and a complex project. Opened in the early 2000s, the venue has long been an important reference point for the city of Piacenza, housed inside what was once a stable for cattle.

Over the years, the venue had gone through careful, detailed renovation work, but the natural changes accumulated over time had created a layering of styles that slowly weakened the original concept. Our intervention started from exactly this point, restoring coherence and identity across spaces that had grown quite different from one another.

A garden rethought from scratch

We took a significant approach to the complete redefinition of the garden, studying new pathways and designing large tables built to hold planters within their own structure. We also built a new outdoor bar with an iron and glass structure, designed to hold its own alongside the surrounding greenery without ever feeling intrusive.

A veranda transformed into a greenhouse

Inside, we completely reimagined the veranda, turning what had been an underused area into a true greenhouse filled with beautiful plants and vintage furniture. Blue leather sofas and armchairs, red and blue seating with an industrial character, and a long communal table now sit beneath an exposed wood ceiling, framed by large glass doors that let in natural light throughout the day.

A mix of vintage furniture and color

The choice of furniture followed a principle of controlled layering, mixing recovered vintage pieces with new elements designed specifically for the space. Yellow, red and blue chairs, green sofas and blue leather armchairs coexist without fear of contrast, giving Baciccia a warm, personal atmosphere that never feels uniform.

The old manger becomes a planter

In the dining room, we redefined the colors and reworked the lighting, converting the old manger, once used for cattle, into a large concrete planter that now holds plants and cacti. This single element becomes the most direct link between the venue’s history and its new life, set against a striking backdrop of red walls and exposed brick details.

From Baciccia to our approach to bar design

The Baciccia project shows how VANDA approaches the renovation of historic venues that have layered over time, working to bring a coherent concept back to the surface without erasing the memory of the place. This balance between history, greenery and furniture continues to guide our bar and restaurant design work across Italy and Europe.