MOGO: Milan’s New Hi-Fi Haven Where Design, Cuisine, and Sound Converge
Words by Yatzer
Location
Via Bernina 1C, Milan, Italy
MOGO: Milan’s New Hi-Fi Haven Where Design, Cuisine, and Sound Converge
Words by Yatzer
Via Bernina 1C, Milan, Italy
Via Bernina 1C, Milan, Italy
Location
Once a niche novelty tucked into Tokyo’s jazz-soaked backstreets, the listening bar is having an international moment—and Milan is tuning in. These venues, inspired by Japan’s Jazz Kissa culture, fuse high-fidelity sound with low-lit intimacy, offering a slower, deeper form of socialising. But the trend has evolved; restaurants are now joining the party, pairing curated vinyl sets with seasonal menus and signature cocktails.
Enter MOGO, a hi-fi bar and restaurant that just opened its doors in Milan’s Isola district. Designed by Giorgia Longoni Studio, it’s a genre-blending feat—equal parts mid-century nostalgia and industrial wabi-sabi—backed by a creative alliance that includes acclaimed chef Yoji Tokuyoshi and music curators Polifonic and Burro Studio Records. More than a bar with good speakers, MOGO is a meticulously composed experience where food, music, and atmosphere intermingle in high resolution.
Photography by Vittorio La Fata.
Photography by Vittorio La Fata.
Longoni’s design artfully fuses mid-century-modern sensibilities with industrial references, threading warm tones and organic materials throughout the space, offset by polished chrome finishes and raw concrete. A luminous grid ceiling sets the tone—cool and bright by day, it evokes the retro-futurist elegance of 1960s corporate interiors; by night, it glows with an amber intimacy, dynamically adjusting to the evening’s soundtrack. Exposed air ducts and concrete beams introduce a touch of brutalist edge, while a vibrant palette of light blue flooring and terracotta velvet seating brings about an element of playfulness and warmth.
Photography by Paolo Silvestri.
Photography by Paolo Silvestri.
Photography by Vittorio La Fata.
This textural layering is further enriched by a series of custom tapestries by Italian-South African artist Andrea Marco Corvino hung against concrete walls. Their folkloric surrealism nods to ancestral storytelling and cultural cross-pollination as well as speaks to the venue’s deeper ethos: MOGO’s name comes from the South African Sotho word Mmogo, meaning “together”—a philosophy of shared experience that pulses throughout.
Conceived as a dynamic social hub, a 360-degree central bar anchors the space but the venue’s hearts beats—where else?—in the custom-designed DJ booth. Clad in rich brown wood, the minimal volume stands elegantly against a built-in media cabinet of matching timber, housing a pair of gleaming stainless-steel speakers handcrafted by H.A.N.D. Hi-Fi and Sound Metaphors. Overhead, additional speakers clad in smoky burl wood veneer are suspended from the ceiling, amplifying not just the sound but the atmosphere as well.
Photography by Vittorio La Fata.
MOGO’s culinary direction, led by Chef Yoji Tokuyoshi, further extends the venue’s refined-yet-relaxed energy. Also known for ventures such as Bentoteca and Pan, Tokuyoshi applies Japanese technique with cosmopolitan fluency resulting in a menu that reads like a remix of izakaya classics and global accents—playful, authentic, and meant for sharing. It’s in the beverage program, however, where MOGO truly shines. Drinks range from impeccably balanced classics to inventive signatures that pull ingredients and ideas from across the globe, while an impressive lineup of Japanese whiskies, small-batch mezcals, and natural wines is sure to delight connoisseurs and curious sippers alike.
More than just another hotspot in Milan’s still-burgeoning hi-fi hospitality scene, MOGO offers a layered experience—equal parts refuge, showcase, and sensory playground. In a city where design and sound increasingly go hand-in-hand, MOGO hits all the right notes.
Photography by Paolo Silvestri.
Photography by Paolo Silvestri.