The Atrium — Where the Bruno’s Story REALLY Begins

Joanne Guzman
Sep 30
3 min read

Updated: Nov 19

Welcome to the Heart of Bruno’s

Welcome to The Atrium, the very first stop on your Bruno’s Passport to Fun adventure — and the room that has seen more plot twists than a telenovela.

But before you admire the glowing trees and cozy booths and think,

“Wow, this place has always been adorable,”

let me stop you right there.

No.

No it has not.

And you deserve to know the truth.

The Real Origin Story (Yes, It Started Across the Street)

Bruno’s was born across the street in 1997, thanks to three absolute legends:

Bruce “Bruno” Davis
Frank Mongetta
Diane Mongetta

They built the Bruno’s — the OG — the version people still talk about like,

“My college boyfriend? Eh.

But old Bruno’s? ICONIC.”

Years later, the torch passed to community powerhouse Rosanna Herrera, who continued the legacy AND moved Bruno’s into this building, where things were… um… visually interesting.

Then in 2017, Rosanna said she was ready to retire and handed the keys to us.

Us.

Jo & Ro.

Two humans who thought we were accepting a restaurant, not the final boss level of restaurant remodeling.

We opened the door, walked into this very room, and immediately said:

“…Oh. Oh wow. Okay. So this is… something.”

The Room We Inherited Was… a Lot

Let’s discuss the décor choices we met on Day One:

• Bright Orange Paint

The exact shade of, “Oops, we committed to this gallon.”

• Beige Everything Else

Walls? Beige.

Trim? Beige.

Energy? Also beige.

• Wood. All the wood. Too much wood.

Someone really said, “Yes, MORE.”

And then kept going.

• Lighting so dim everyone looked like they'd risen from the grave

Cozy? No.

The official color of 'I can't see what I'm eating' and 'I'm not sure who I'm dining with'.

• AND A GIANT MURAL

A mural so big, so bold, so aggressively present it felt like it had its own Social Security number.

It watched us…

We watched it…

Everyone was uncomfortable.

In summary:

If a pumpkin spice latte and a lumberyard had a baby and painted it orange, this room was that baby.

Then Came COVID — And the Pivot That Changed Everything

Like every restaurant in California, we shut our dining room during lockdown. But we didn’t shut down our purpose.

We fed our community —including displaced families during the CZU fires —not because we wanted praise or attention, but because helping people is who we are.

And one pandemic evening… we bought a tree.

A giant glowing LED ginkgo tree.

The first one.

The one that started ALL of this.

We placed it on the patio for our CoronaCation outdoor dining “destination experience,”and people LOVED it.

When indoor dining returned, we looked at each other and said: “…do we bring the tree inside too?”

We did.

And suddenly, Bruno’s had a visual identity — artful, whimsical, unexpected, joyful.

One tree became two.

Two became the vibe.

Baby ones were added to the bar.

And now the Atrium glows like the heart of the building — because it is.