Ekogroup Vila

Located on Polonă Street, no. 19, Eko Group Vila is an architectural gem with a rich history. Built in the 1930s by architect Alexandru Zaharia, the villa was the residence of Gheorghe Tătărăscu, an important prime minister of Romania. During the communist period, the building was nationalized and used as a diplomatic headquarters. After the 1989 Revolution, the villa was recovered by the Tătărăscu family and went through several transformations, including operating as a luxury restaurant. Currently, under the name Eko Group Vila, the building has been renovated and modernized, becoming a corporate boutique business headquarters, combining tradition with innovation and excellence.

A refined historical villa centrally located in Bucharest, recently updated with modern amenities. The venue features elegant indoor and outdoor spaces suited for luxury events—ranging from private parties and weddings to corporate meetings, conferences, and business forums—with top-notch service, audio-visual equipment, catering, and parking.

The Birth of a Mediterranean Villa

But the story behind the present is much more. The old Mediterranean villa was built in the 1930s by great architects – one of them Alexandru Zaharia – at the request of Arethia Tătărescu, born Piștereanu, according to her plans and money, after her marriage to Gheorghe Tătărescu.

Nicknamed the “grand dame of Gorj” – a Gorj native by adoption, her husband being a pure Gorj native, from Vlăduleni – Arethia was prepared for a normal life, until she met, at the age of twenty-seven, the young second lieutenant Gheorghe Tătărescu.

She was sent to retirement in Belgium, studied painting, sculpture and the Conservatory like any good lady, and in 1916, during the war, she married the 36th Prime Minister of Romania (period 1934-1937 and interval 1939-1940). This is where the film begins that the young lady did not anticipate, which was both a blessing and a curse for her.

After the war, the young Tătărescu, coming from a family that was part of the old boyardom of Oltenia, entered politics. Liberal by definition, intelligent, with a doctorate in Law from the Sorbonne, he quickly advanced hierarchically and became Prime Minister, in 1938 being even considered the best in the contemporary history of Romania, when the Romanian leu had the same parity as the dollar.

A Turn Towards Darkness

In 1947, fate turned another page, forever throwing the peace of the house into the abyss. Then, the terror of popular power entered. The decree for the nationalization of the buildings that belonged to the “big bourgeoisie” came into force, and the most valuable buildings in Bucharest became “the property of the State as the property of the entire people”. Not ordinary people moved into them, but people from the new power, the red bourgeoisie. That was the moment when the Tătărescu family lost everything.

During the 1989 Revolution, the house on Polonă Street was the headquarters of a diplomatic corps. After ten years, Sanda Tătărescu – after marriage Negropontes – managed to get her house back with the help of a remorseful communist, to whom she remained close until his death in 2009.

Mrs. Tătărescu-Negropontes no longer had the money to restore her palace, so the former communist rented it to a Turk to open a small and discreet restaurant. Pasha, he called him. At the end of 2005, the Turk gave up the business, and the house was taken over by a group of 22 businessmen to open Heritage, a restaurant unlike anything seen in Bucharest at the time.

Among them were influential people, such as Robert Rekkers – CEO of Banca Transilvania – Anca Ioan – former CEO of Țiriac Holdings – and Răsvan Radu – president of UniCredit Țiriac.

A New Chapter with Heritage

The Gheorghe Tătărescu House was completely renovated, changing all the installations, but only inside the walls, being a historical monument. Even so, the villa on Polonă Street took on a new look. Without success in the hands of entrepreneurs, the palace ended up in Dinu Patriciu.

The businessman who worked in the oil, banking and real estate sectors bought the shares of most of the former shareholders and gave a new face to the Tătărescu villa, the one that, by the way, the 22 rich people also dreamed of, but which only took shape under his leadership.

The new architects and decorators brought back the noble and natural fragrance of yesteryear. The official and last reopening of the Heritage restaurant was in April 2011, when Dinu Patriciu’s daughter, Ana, was the manager of the place. Expensive, high-quality materials were used, the furniture was changed, and the walls were flooded with the works of George Fikl, a surrealist painter.

After his departure from Heritage, another French chef was brought in, Juan Amador, a creator and promoter of modern molecular cuisine. Without a doubt, Heritage was the most sophisticated place in Bucharest. Maybe even in Romania. But the three Michelin stars were not enough to ensure a constant clientele, so the owners made the decision to close the restaurant.

EkoGroup Transforms History into Modernity

Now, history moves forward and intertwines with modernity. EkoGroup took over the Gheorghe Tătărescu House, under the name EkoGroup Vila, transforming it into a jewel of the urban landscape, where contemporaneity still retains its former charm. Under the guidance of visionary CEO Eduard Petrescu, the elegant building was metamorphosed into a boutique corporate business headquarters, where memories of the past are now combined with the technological facilities of the present.

In this place, the old walls tell stories of bygone times, while the modern offices whisper about the innovative future of the company, founded on three undeniable values: innovation, tradition and excellence. So, the story of the Gheorghe Tătărescu House is not only about its glorious past, but also about its vibrant present and its promising future.