Milan offers culture and art, work and fashion, and even if your granny is not here to make Sunday lunch, you should also be aware that it is also possible to eat very well. You know why? Because, in addition to foreign restaurants and local fare, there are also a lot of little places where you can go back to the flavors of your childhood, or discover new tastes from different Italian regions. Would you like to discover Italy through food? Or are you feeling homesick, perhaps? We organized a “tour of Italy” by picking restaurants, region by region, from Northern, Southern and Central Italy. So, are you ready to start?
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PIEMONTE – Alla cucina delle Langhe
This place near Corso Como features numerous Piedmont specialties. Begin with cheese platter starters, prepared with utterly amazing regional choices, then move on to fresh tajarin pasta, and of course, don’t miss their typical truffle.. Yuum!
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VENETO – La Tana del Lupo
Are you missing the mountains? Well, you’ll be fine at the Tana, then, but don’t expect luxury accommodation. This is a truly old-school trattoria with amazing food, where you will eat like a king. Don’t be surprised if staff talks to you in Veneto dialect when you order, between a serving of polenta and another… It’s part of the place’s charm!
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LIGURIA – U Barba
This restaurant’s ambience and furnishings are very original, and it deserves a visit just for that: the quality of their food will complete your experience. If you feel like some amazing Genona flavors, dear Focaccia di Recco and pesto lovers, this is the place for you. This much is obvious, and there is so much more to it. And if you have some extra time on your hands, go play bocce in the court right next to the restaurant.
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EMILIA ROMAGNA – Da Giordano il Bolognese
Their name might work as a guarantee of awesome already, but it is only by testing some dishes in this totally laidback trattoria that you can understand what we are really excited about. In the menu you will find tagliatelle, tortellini, lasagne, passatelli and handmade tortelli. Long live Emilia food!
- TOSCANA – La Tavernetta da Elio Were you looking for one of those Tuscan trattorias, whose furniture might not look so modern, but where the food is always wonderful? If that is the case, here you go: this place, turning 60 years old this year, offers traditional Tuscan fare: ribollita (soup with bread and vegetables), crostini con i fegatini di pollo (chicken-liver canapés) and fiorentina steak of course, as the queen of the table.
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UMBRIA – PreTestoNew, fresh and utterly Umbrian: this is how we want to introduce this restaurant. All their dishes are prepared with locally sourced ingredients, and even their chefs left their hometowns to come spoil Milanese tastebuds, with cold cuts, cheese and excellent truffle, straight from Norcia.
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LAZIO – Giulio, pane e ojoIt’s not just the people living close to the aptly-named Porta Romana who love this place — isn’t the name of this area is such a funny coincidence? Giulio, pane e ojo’s genuine Roman fare attracts Rome lovers from Milan and beyond. It might seem like an unoriginal choice, but their spaghetti cacio e pepe, with cheese and pepper, are just unbeatable.
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CAMPANIA – Amici del Liberty
You were probably expecting us to include a pizza place for pizza capital Campania, but we decided to do something different, and help you discover that no, Neapolitan food is not just about pizza and mozzarella. This restaurant specializes in fish-based dishes, cooked by super expert, Neapolitan chefs only.
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APULIA – Trulli Love
In the center of the city, just a short walk away from famous La Scala theater, you will find this place, offering Puglia cuisine. Even if their typical dishes are a little revisited, Altamura bruschetta, cime di rapa (turnip greens) and their amazing burrata will never be missing from the menu!
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SARDEGNA – Sa Mesa
Sardinia was never this close, thanks to this fantastic, well-known restaurant that everyone knows in Milan by now. The island’s culinary tradition is well represented here, from North to South, with food from the sea and from the land, including porceddu, Sardinian pork, cheese and excellent local wine. So, what are you waiting for?
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CALABRIA – Dongiò
This is another place offering amazing, typical fare that brings to mind mama’s food. Inside the restaurant, tradition rules: ‘nduja, a spicy cold cut, is everywhere from pasta to starters, and the same goes for the ever-present taste of onion. If you want to go to Calabria, but cannot afford to fly all the way down there, just go to Dongiò’s!
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SICILIA – Muddica
A tiny bistrot where you can taste raw fish delicacies, and other Sicilian specialties that straight from the island: if they totally seduce your tastebuds, you can also choose to buy some, and take them home with you. Not to miss is their cannolo scomposto, a deconstructed cannolo: just have it, come on, you’ll love it!