Back Home Hospitality (the team behind Che Fico) has opened Via Aurelia, a new restaurant in San Francisco’s Mission Rock neighborhood.
Named after the ancient Roman road that once connected Rome to Pisa, the space takes design cues from Tuscan traditions.
Living walls at Via Aurelia
The interiors—led by de la Cruz Interior Design (DLC-ID) in collaboration with Color Atelier—are defined by vaulted ceilings, Florentine sandstone, and terracotta tones, with limewashed walls and frescoed plaster patinas running throughout. Every surface is treated as a living material rather than a backdrop—softly weathered, tactile, and referential to Italian craft.
A custom palette of muted blues, greens, and yellows introduces tonal depth and subtle movement across the space as well.
At the far end of the restaurant, a striking mural is framed by deeply pigmented, limewashed walls, evoking a darkened, clouded sky and anchoring the room with quiet drama.
“My aim was to channel the ubiquitous touchstones of Italian style—pared back to their purest forms and hues—and then layer them with a soft, modern hand,” says Jon de la Cruz, founder of DLC-ID. “Vaulted ceilings, frescoed plaster patinas, and burnished, time-worn tones—olive, terracotta, ochre, blue juniper—create a palette rooted in antiquity yet entirely of today.”
Rooted in its Bay Area setting
Via Aurelia occupies the ground floor of the Visa headquarters, where views open dramatically to the San Francisco Bay and the Giants’ ballpark, a setting that informed the restaurant’s broader atmosphere.
“It’s fine dining,” adds de la Cruz, “but I wanted it to feel as if you’ve stepped into a casual coastal town—tranquil, sun-washed, and timeless.”
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