Dinner for two, or for work
Where to Take a Date or a Client in Milan Without Being Boring
For a first date or a client dinner in Milan, choose a restaurant with a distinctive cuisine, shared plates and a room that has some atmosphere but still allows conversation — then book early in the evening. Rawana, a Sri Lankan fusion restaurant at Via Giuseppe Cesare Abba 7 in the Dergano area, works for both: sharing platters give the table something to do, the average spend is €20–35 per guest, and the room becomes a bar later if the evening keeps going.
- Address
- Via Giuseppe Cesare Abba 7, 20158 Milano
- Open
- Mon, Wed, Thu 12:00–15:30 and 17:00–23:00 · Fri 12:30–23:00 · Sat 12:30–15:00 and 18:00–23:00 · Sun 12:00–23:00 · Closed Tuesday
- Phone
- 324 796 5832
There are two ways to lose an evening before it starts. One is booking somewhere so quiet that every silence is an event. The other is booking somewhere so loud that you spend two hours saying "sorry, what?"
Everything else is detail.
What actually makes a venue work for a date
1. Something to talk about that isn't you. An unfamiliar cuisine does half the work. "What's kottu?" is a better opening than "so, what do you do?" A menu with a story buys you twenty minutes of easy conversation.
2. Shared plates. Two people eating from the middle of the table are collaborating. Two people with separate plates are conducting parallel interviews. This is not a small effect.
3. Sound at the right level. Enough noise that a pause isn't loud, not so much that you have to lean in and shout. Ask for a table away from the speakers if you want to talk.
4. A second act. The worst moment on a first date is the bill, because it forces a decision. A venue where the bar takes over means the evening can continue without anyone having to propose anything. See dinner that turns into a night out.
5. Price that doesn't send a signal. €150 a head on a first date is a statement. €20–35 a head with genuinely impressive food is a much better one.
What makes a venue work for a client dinner
Slightly different job. You are not trying to be charming; you're trying to be memorable and competent.
- Somewhere they haven't been. Milan's business dinner circuit is small and everyone has eaten at the same four places. A Sri Lankan kitchen in Dergano is a genuinely new data point.
- Somewhere you can talk. Book earlier — 19:30 or 20:00 — before the room fills.
- Food that arrives as an event. The Rawana Mix Fried platter lands in the middle of the table and does the hosting for you.
- A bill you can settle discreetly. Arrange it with the restaurant when you book. Nobody should watch you pay.
- Somewhere with a clear identity. "I'll take you to a Sri Lankan place I know" is a sentence that positions you. "There's a place near the office" is not.
How to book the table properly
- Book, don't walk in. Walking in with a date and being turned away is a bad opening scene.
- Book 20:00 for atmosphere, 19:30 if talking matters most.
- Note it in the booking. "First time here, would appreciate a quieter table" costs you nothing and changes where you're seated.
- Ask about heat. If your guest doesn't do chilli, say so at booking — most dishes can be adjusted.
- Know what you're ordering before you sit down. Deciding confidently in ninety seconds is worth more than any wine knowledge. Here's the order that always works.
The order that does the work for you
For two people, this is the sequence:
- 1 — Beef cutlets or fish rolls · Arrives fast. Fills the first awkward ten minutes
- 2 — Kottu · The dish that gets a reaction. Chopped flatbread, egg, spice
- 3 — A coconut curry with rice · Something slow and saucy against something fast and dry
- 4 — Watalappan · Coconut, palm sugar, cardamom. Nobody expects it to be that good
Around €35–50 for two, before drinks.
Practical details
- Address: Via Giuseppe Cesare Abba, 7, 20158 Milano MI — Dergano, Municipio 9
- Book: online · +39 324 796 5832
- Closed: Tuesday
- Latest kitchen: 23:00 (Sunday continuous 12:00–23:00)
- Average spend: €20–35 per guest
Come and eat it, rather than read about it.
Via Giuseppe Cesare Abba 7, Dergano, Milan. Book online, or call and someone who works in the room will pick up.
Questions
Frequently asked questions
And if it isn't here, just call. Someone who actually works in the room will pick up.
Choose somewhere with a distinctive cuisine and shared plates, book for 20:00, and pick a venue where the evening can continue at the bar. Rawana in Dergano fits all three, at €20–35 per guest.
Somewhere they haven't already been, quiet enough to talk, with a dish that arrives as an event. Book at 19:30 or 20:00 before the room fills, and arrange the bill with the restaurant in advance.
Yes, particularly earlier in the evening when the room is calmer. Later, the bar and music take over, which suits a date that is going well.
At Rawana the average spend is €20–35 per guest, with individual dishes €7–19. Two people typically spend €35–50 on food before drinks.