Paju Villa, the 90 years old Art Nouveau villa, is located in Tallinn’s Nõmme district, mostly consisting of older private houses. Sometimes dubbed the “forest city”, the district also happens to be one of the wealthiest regions in Estonia.
Therefore it’s more than fitting, that Paju Villa’s story is equally rich:
Mrs Karoline Paju had gotten a permission to build a simple one-storey building on the plot, but appetite comes when eating: soon it was to be two floors and an auxiliary building. As the plans grew more & more grandiose, against the original plans and permits, the construction was ordered to be suspended. But the persistent lady kept on building, in defiance of the officials – and near-bankruptcy. Only a visit by a police constable brought the construction into halt. Yet 1931 the villa was still finished, against all odds.
During the Soviet era Paju Villa was nationalized, slowly leading to its degradation. The derelict villa only got a second life through sheer determination, matching one of Mrs Paju’s. After years of renovation, the villa was recognized as the best renovated building in Nõmme, 2017.
Today this unique milieu makes one admire how beautifully old Mrs Paju’s vision, never meant to be a restaurant, has been converted into one: kitchen in the cellar, the bar in the back room, cosy dining rooms and garden functioning as a terrace. Only awaiting you to become part of its story.
