Friday night and Saturday morning as spaces…

In Bengaluru’s ever-shifting nightlife, Studio Camarada designs Pizza Bakery and Paris Panini side-by-side in Whitefield, combining the perfect fixtures of a weekend ritual

09 Mar 2026

Namrata Dewanjee

The year was 2022. After the post-COVID haze, Bengaluru had sprung back to life with renewed fervour. Everything was shiny and new, like the stories we had all heard from the 2000s come to life. There were three hotspots of culture: Indiranagar, Koramangala and Church Street. Throngs of people poured (quite literally) about town. The verdict was divided between the old-school townies who preferred the classic Pecos pub and the new guard, who made their way to the more swanky watering holes. But in the litany of tipples, the only gospel that united the disordered masses was the decision about where to end their night. It was during one of those fated sojourns that we stumbled into Pizza Bakery. There truly is nothing better than a pizza done right after a night out.

It is only expected that in such an encounter, the location or the details would be lost in the night. All that comes to mind now is the warmth of the light and the aroma of the sourdough bread wafting across the street (which we invariably followed like Argonauts into the island of Aeaea). A year after this routine was lodged into our lives, we discovered Paris Panini. And therein began a troublesome alliance. You see, if Pizza Bakery provides the best way to end your Friday night, Paris Panini furnishes the inevitable soothe for a slightly upturned Saturday morning. Both joints carry their own identities, but to most Bangaloreans are two sides of the same coin.

“The challenge was balancing two distinct brand personalities under one roof without either overpowering the other — creating contrast while ensuring harmony was a delicate but rewarding process”

Andre Camara

The striped tiles are from Trove, the furniture from Loyora Designs and the pendant light from Bamboo Pecker; Photography by Arjun Krishna

A few years have passed since the serendipitous introduction. Bengaluru has changed too, and with it has arrived a new addition to its hotspots, Whitefield. And the dual fixtures of the perfect weekend have also made their way to the neighbourhood. Andre Camara of Studio Camarada, who designed the two spaces alongside Anurag Kodancha, tells us, “The challenge was balancing two distinct brand personalities under one roof without either overpowering the other — creating contrast while ensuring harmony was a delicate but rewarding process.” While Pizza Bakery demanded a raw, bold and dramatic character, complete with their signature mosaic brick ovens and chevron tiles, Paris Panini needed a light and airy charm. Placed right next to one another, the two spaces allow you to travel across Europe from Italy to France with no Schengen visa.

The difference between the two interiors is perhaps best described as you would experience them. Picture this: It’s 7 pm after a dreary long day, or week. In proximity to your workplace, bubbles the recipe to cure all ailments of the heart and mind. A wickedly delectable pizza called The Hellboy, inspired by Paulie Gee’s in New York. The black and white striped flooring almost lures you inside. The handcrafted bamboo light sculptures above set the mood. Mona Lisa slurps on a milkshake, delights in pasta and toasts to your night over a slice. When Pizza Bakery came to Bengaluru in 2017, it arrived with a promise to bring Naples to the Garden City. Well, where in Naples would you find such iconic endorsement? Besides, you can travel the globe and still cede that whatever the world does, Bengaluru does better. You may think this superlative praise, but wait till you try the garlic bread, with a side of beer on tap. As the warm wood and painted walls work their magic, the evening tumbles into night. Before you leave, there is always room for dessert. Pizza Bakery’s Tiramisu, a humble dish bordering on cliche, takes on a strangely arresting character. So much so that people who have long left the city still swear they would return in a heartbeat for the same.

The next morning, you realise that the memory alone does not satisfy the itch of the experience. So you do the only right thing. You walk right back to where it began. In the light of the morning, an alluring blue facade calls out to you. And names pop out from the menu. Estelle, Laura, Victor. A terrazzo flooring with hints of red grounds you. You settle on Jacques, for garlic butter prawns offer the excuse to indulge right at breakfast. Around you, a wall covered in doodles appears to have walked straight out of Parisian streets. “It was the most enjoyable area to design. It allowed us to tell a story in a light-hearted, almost conversational way. It instantly connects with people,” says Andre. And connect it does, for in the foggy hours of euphoria, you may not recall what brought about the experience, but it lies in the details. They are carefully considered, whether in the brass accents of Paris Panini reminiscent of old cafes or the plastered walls, exposed ceilings and a sense of organised chaos at Pizza Bakery. Perhaps the best thing you could do while you enjoy your sandwich and sip on some iced tea, pretending you are on a European holiday, is to hope you forget all about such a place. Lest you, like most of us who have come before you, form an unhealthy attachment to this most beautiful routine.