### [Librería Valladolid: A Basement Bar Hidden Among the Pages](https://01des.com/en/project/3686)

**Published:** 2026-11-02T00:49:43

**Author:** 01DES Editor

**Excerpt:** Beneath an old house in Mexico City’s Roma neighbourhoo…

FOOD & BEVERAGE · MEXICO CITY

From the street, all that gives Librería Valladolid away is a narrow doorway. Inside, shelves stretch above the stairs and books pile up at foot level. A little lamp sits on one of the stacks. The bar is further down the wooden staircase.

![Banquette in front of the book wall](https://cdn.01des.com/uploads/2026/11/20261102-004813-CNYLibM6.webp!dis)

Warm light washes the full wall of shelves, with round tables spaced along the banquette.

## An entrance borrowed from a bookshop

The house dates to the early twentieth century. Em-Estudio looked to Roma’s second-hand bookshops when designing the entrance. Books and shelving take up much of the vestibule, and guests pass through two doorways before catching sight of the bar.

![Corner shelves and burgundy seating](https://cdn.01des.com/uploads/2026/11/20261102-004814-L6XlAeTC.webp!dis)

Two walls of books meet above an upholstered bench that turns the corner.

![Old books beside the wooden stairs](https://cdn.01des.com/uploads/2026/11/20261102-004815-GKuFK8DT.webp!dis)

Books are stacked beside the steps, with a small lamp resting on one pile.

![Passage to the main room](https://cdn.01des.com/uploads/2026/11/20261102-004818-Mg8pti0q.webp!dis)

Low lights on both sides illuminate the floor of the passage, with a wall of books visible at the far end.

## Turning the spines to the wall

Downstairs, the books change direction. Stacked spine inwards above the banquettes, their pages face the room all the way up to the ceiling. Warm light edges each shelf. From across the room, the variations in the colour of the paper pick out each tier.

Burgundy banquettes turn the corner beneath the shelves, with round marble tables in front. Dark herringbone flooring runs up to the counter. Brass and gold leaf catch the light in the darker recesses of the bar, DJ booth and bathrooms.

![Round table beside a banquette](https://cdn.01des.com/uploads/2026/11/20261102-004819-ep3yGV5O.webp!dis)

A pale round table stands beside the red seating, backed by rows of exposed pages.

![Gold wall and record shelving](https://cdn.01des.com/uploads/2026/11/20261102-004820-r3Li5ICS.webp!dis)

Records fill individual compartments beside a gold wall. Bookshelves are visible to the left.

![Shelves of tins](https://cdn.01des.com/uploads/2026/11/20261102-004822-YFlkf4yA.webp!dis)

Tins and jars line the shelves at the end of the passage.

![Green table alongside the book wall](https://cdn.01des.com/uploads/2026/11/20261102-004823-wOvPFpbK.webp!dis)

A long green table runs parallel to the shelves. Small lamps pick out the veining of the stone.

![Wall light above a plaque](https://cdn.01des.com/uploads/2026/11/20261102-004824-hJkr9S7G.webp!dis)

A small wall light shines down onto a square plaque.

## A long table behind the shelves

A shelving unit stocked with tins and sundries conceals the entrance to a second lounge. Here the ceiling is a glossy green. Books still line both walls, but a single long table of green marble occupies the centre. Dark timber Van Beuren chairs with yellow seats run along its sides.

A mirror on the end wall reflects the tabletop and the shelves on either side. In the main room guests gather around separate little tables. In this long, narrow lounge, a row of seats shares a single tabletop.

![Street entrance](https://cdn.01des.com/uploads/2026/11/20261102-004826-1SGApoMp.webp!dis)

A narrow opening in the pale facade reveals a light inside.

![Bar counter against a gold backdrop](https://cdn.01des.com/uploads/2026/11/20261102-004827-b16kg3NY.webp!dis)

Bottles line illuminated shelves behind the dark counter in the foreground.

![Shelves around the staircase](https://cdn.01des.com/uploads/2026/11/20261102-004828-Cx2lCSPd.webp!dis)

Shelves follow the turn of the stairs, with a narrow gap between the light by the wall and the piles of books.

![Chairs on both sides of the long table](https://cdn.01des.com/uploads/2026/11/20261102-004830-JF7T82E2.webp!dis)

Two rows of seats flank the table, reflected with the shelving in the mirror at the far end.

> On the stairs, guests see the spines of individual books. Around the seating downstairs, Em-Estudio turned them the other way, exposing tiers of paper to warm light. The two lounges differ in colour and in how people sit together, yet in both rooms guests take their seats beside an illuminated wall of books.

Project credits

Project — Librería Valladolid  
Location — Roma, Mexico City, Mexico  
Design — Em-Estudio  
Architecture and interior design — Taller Ivan Esqueda, Gala Sánchez-Renero Estudio  
Design team — Berenice Galindo, Sergio Peláez, Fabián Cedillo  
Construction and installations — Miguel Ángel Márquez  
Carpentry — Leonardo Cabrera  
Photography — Nin Solis; images 02 and 10 by Rene Villaseñor  
Images and original feature — Dezeen  
Editorial adaptation — 01DES

**Tags:** Basement bar, Book-lined walls, Em-Estudio, Mexico City

**Categories:** Food & Beverage

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