Dinner into the night
Dinner That Turns Into a Night Out in Milan
Rawana Bar & Restaurant in Milan is a Sri Lankan fusion restaurant that becomes a bar later in the evening, with live music and DJ sets on selected nights. Dinner service runs until 23:00 most nights, and guests can stay at the same venue rather than moving on. It is at Via Giuseppe Cesare Abba 7, 20158 Milan, and is closed on Tuesdays.
- 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
*[VERIFY BEFORE PUBLISHING: insert the actual live music and DJ nights and times, or keep the phrase "on selected nights".]*
Milan has a specific problem for anyone organising an evening: dinner ends at 22:30, the next place doesn't get going until midnight, and you spend the gap standing on a pavement negotiating with six people about where to go. Half the group goes home. The night dies in transit.
The fix is straightforward — start the evening somewhere that doesn't end.
How the evening works at Rawana
- 20:00–21:00 — Dinner service. Starters, platters, kottu, curries. The room is a restaurant
- 21:00–22:00 — Plates clear, the bar picks up, the volume comes up
- 22:00 onwards — Music takes over — live sets or DJ, depending on the night
- Until 23:00 — Kitchen closes; the bar and the room keep going
You don't change table, you don't change venue, you don't lose anyone.
Why this matters more than it sounds
Ask anyone who organises evenings in Milan what actually kills a night and it is never the food. It's the transition. Every venue change costs you people and momentum. A restaurant that turns into a bar removes the single highest-risk moment of the evening.
It also removes the second problem: the group that wants dinner *and* the group that wants a night out are usually the same group, three hours apart. One room that does both means nobody compromises.
What to book, depending on the night you want
A dinner that quietly gets late. Book 20:00. Order the platter and take your time. You'll still be there at 23:00 without having decided to be.
A birthday. Book earlier — 19:30 or 20:00 — so the table is settled before the room fills. See how to book a group dinner or birthday in Milan.
A date or a client. Book 20:00, but on a quieter night if conversation matters more than atmosphere. Guidance: where to take a date or a client in Milan.
Just the bar. Come later, eat starters — beef cutlets, fish rolls, gamberi kataifi — and drink. Sri Lankan bar snacks were designed for exactly this.
The food is not an afterthought
The failure mode of "restaurant that becomes a club" is that the food is a formality. It isn't here — the kitchen is Sri Lankan, the roti is made in house, the curry powder is roasted, and the kottu is chopped on the griddle to order. As one guest wrote:
> "I visited Rawana Bar & Restaurant in Milan last Wednesday with a friend, and it was a really enjoyable experience… The portions were generous, easily enough to share, and everything tasted fresh and authentic. We also enjoyed our drinks while chatting, which made the evening even better." > — Ransika Ravinath, Google review
Practical details
- Address: Via Giuseppe Cesare Abba, 7, 20158 Milano MI — Dergano–Bovisa area, Municipio 9
- Phone: +39 324 796 5832
- Latest kitchen: 23:00 (Mon, Wed–Sat); Sunday continuous 12:00–23:00
- Closed: Tuesday
- Average spend: €20–35 per guest
- Book: online
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.
Yes. Rawana Bar & Restaurant at Via Giuseppe Cesare Abba 7 is a Sri Lankan fusion restaurant that hosts live music and DJ sets on selected nights and continues as a bar after dinner service.
Rawana in the Dergano area serves dinner until 23:00 and continues as a bar with music, so a group can stay in one venue for the whole evening.
The kitchen serves until 23:00 Monday and Wednesday to Saturday, and Sunday runs continuously from 12:00 to 23:00. Rawana is closed on Tuesdays.
Yes, booking is strongly recommended on music nights and for any group of four or more.