Right in the centre of Warsaw, in the street where East and West meet, there is a café that embodies the “Dream of Warsaw” – a classic, dreamy interior, home to the sublime and delightful pleasures of the palate. Both the origins of the brand and the modern design of the confectionery make Lukullus a truly Varsovian place.
During their many visits for the famous Hungarian rose filled doughnuts the founders of our brand, Agata and Maciek, thought over and over about making this special place a scene for a photoshoot… Thanks to the enthusiastic response from the café’s owners our dreams came true, and we are delighted to present them to you.
Design hurling trough an ocean of references
Lukullus Café, located in Chmielna street and designed by the architect Jan Strumiłło, is a tribute to its surroundings and to post-war Warsaw. Among other references, the café’s interior design draws on its neighbourhood – the cinema Atlantic, in particular its old neon sign. Hence the plethora of marine inspirations: wavy walls, navy blue ceiling or crushed stone floors that bring to mind a stony beach – even the blue curtains wave like ocean waters. The architect grew the initial idea into a mature interpretation, inspired by the traditional interior design of the halls of transatlantic ocean liners. The space is governed by the principle of division of walls into three parts – a ceramic base, teakwood veneers in the middle, topped with openwork wooden cylinders.
It is certainly no coincidence that the architect responsible for Chmielna street’s Lukullus Café also designed the apartment of one of the founders of 366 Concept – Maciej Cypryk.
Owners of Lukullus, Albert Judycki and Jacek Malarski. Photo: Piotr Porebsky for Forbes.
Furnished according to the vision of an ideal post-war Warsaw
The owners of the cafe, trained pastry chefs Albert Judycki and Jacek Malarski, were involved in the design of the interior from the very beginning. They acquired their education in Paris: Albert Judycki holds a Pastry Diploma from the Parisian Le Cordon Bleu and Jacek Malarski graduated in Pastry at the Ecole Gregoire Ferrandi, also known as the Harvard of culinary arts. France became a source of inspiration for both their pastries and their interior design. Their vision was centred around Warsaw’s coffee bars, 70s Milanese cafés and the organic shapes of Alvar Aalto’s architecture.
The interior also represents the owners’ vision of the exclusive Varsovian venues from the time of their parents’ youth. It truly is a time machine – sending one back to two eras: the late 50s and the late 60s. Many of the decorations and accessories adorning the interior were brought by Albert and Jacek from flea markets in France.
One’s eye can feast on vintage glass and brass sconces mounted upon the teakwood veneer-covered walls and the beautiful roman bust in black metal standing tall upon the crushed stone floors. One special ornament is a decorative wooden panneau found at a Parisian flea market, painted by one of Jean Cocteau’s friends, and which became the starting point for the interior design of this ravishing Varsovian café. Thus, like everything that would make a place chic and classy in the past, the very same objects help create the legend of a place that one yearns to return to.
A bust of Lukullus. Photo: Lukullus Instagram.
Honouring tradition
Lukullus Café’s story spreads over three generations. Albert Judycki’s grandfather, Jan Dynowski, maître chocolatier in Wedel’s chocolate factory prior to the war, founded his own confectionery called “Kremówka” in Warsaw’s Praga district in 1946. It paved the way for Lukullus.
After Jan’s passing, the shop was taken over by Albert’s grandmother Stanisława – for many years one would go to get pastries in Praga district from “Dynowska’s”. Then, the shop was passed on to Albert’s mother who was naturally later joined by Albert himself. Grandfather Jan was a wonderful confectioner – to this day the family remembers his pralines, his lemon ice-cream, his cream-filled choux… He is also remembered as an elegant, polite, well-read gentleman in a suit, ever the excellent craftsman. Such is the tradition – the culture of craftsmanship – safeguarded to this day by the owners of Lukullus Café.
Lukullus Sweetness: Jasminum, Limoncello 2.0, Orinoko and others...
Lukullus’ doughnuts, with their truly Parisian rose flavour, are second to none – the same scent from the Bulgarian Valley of Roses is used by the Parisian fashion house Chanel in their perfume.
366 Concept x Lukullus
We are amazed by the way in which the owners – and the designers – of the place have managed to draw on the best traditions of Varsovian venues. Lukullus – the café located at Chmielna street – is in our eyes a masterpiece of concept, design, and precise execution. It holds a special place in our hearts: the fondness and the passion for classical projects, the shared love of tradition and history, even the similar educational paths leading trough Paris are what unites the two brands: the Lukullus confectionery and the iconic furniture brand 366 Concept – Retro Furniture. Such are the reasons why the idea of a photoshoot at Lukullus’ has long been brewing in our heads, and every visit for a cup of delicious coffee and a pastry made us hungrier for the idea.
With this photoshoot in mind, we’ve prepared an exceptional release: the Boucle fabric – meaning buckle in French – which owes its renown to the famous 1954 Coco Chanel jacket. For the interior of the café, we have chosen fabrics in colours such as Sierra, Mustard, Bottle Green, Taupe and Indigo – assorted with the shades of the phenomenal floor mosaic and the colour scheme of the whole interior. For the photoshoot we have selected the 366 Metal Armchairs with brass legs in the shades Gold Brass and Gold Matt, and the 200-190 Chairs. All the models are made of ash wood, in the shade Dark Wood – 03. The interior was also the perfect setting for the Bar Stools in sizes S and M, the 366 Armchair and the Fox Armchair. Novelty lovers will be blown away by the 200-190 Bench and the pre-release of the 366 Metal Club armchair.
