Must-see restaurants in Milan

  • The original Pasticceria Marchesi shop exterior.

    Pasticceria Marchesi

    Corso Magenta & Sant'Ambrogio

    Since 1824 the original Marchesi pasticceria (pastry shop) has been charming customers with its refined 20th-century features and picture-perfect petit…

  • Seta

    Milan

    Smooth as the silk after which it's named, Seta is Michelin-starred dining at its best: beautiful, inventive and full of flavour surprises. Diners sit on…

  • Il Luogo di Aimo e Nadia

    Milan

    Started by Aimo and Nadia Moroni in 1962 as a simple trattoria, it’s now one of the most revered restaurants in town, with two-Michelin stars to its name…

  • Entrance to Pavè Ice-cream

    Pavè Ice-Cream

    Milan

    As the sibling of pasticceria (pastry shop) phenomenon Pavè, you can expect great things from this contemporary gelateria with its marble-topped counter…

  • Tokuyoshi entrance

    Tokuyoshi

    Milan

    Take a creative culinary voyage from Japan to Italy with Yoji Tokuyoshi at the helm. One-time sous-chef of world-renowned Osteria Francescana, this…

  • Outside the Pavé pasticceria and cafe

    Pavé

    Milan

    Try not to argue over the frolla con ganache, an insanely good tart filled with dark chocolate ganache and topped with crunchy cacao nuggets. After all,…

  • Tipografia Alimentare

    Milan

    Take a break from Milan at this laid-back food hub on the Martesana Canal. Run by fresh-food warriors Martina and Mattia, its vegetarian-focused menu…

  • Trattoria del Pescatore

    Milan

    Milan’s finest fish restaurant hides modestly behind a row of green awnings. At the helm are Sardinian couple Giuliano and Agnese and their son, who…

  • LùBar

    Milan

    This fashionable Sicilian restaurant in the 19th-century glasshouse of Napoleon’s neoclassical Villa Reale is the brainchild of Luisa Beccaria’s three…

  • A Santa Lucia

    Duomo & San Babila

    Part of one of the great waves of migration from the south, Leone and Rosetta Legnani opened their first restaurant in 1929. They brought with them their…

  • Trattoria Trippa

    Milan

    Having honed his skills at Michelin-starred St Hubertus in the Dolomites, chef Diego Rossi and blogger Peter Caroli now have their own restaurant. As the…

  • Spazio

    Duomo & San Babila

    Located on the fourth floor of the Mercato del Duomo is chef Niko Romito’s low-key restaurant run by graduates of his culinary school in Abruzzo (where…

  • (R)esistenza Casearia

    Milan

    Street-food guru Giuseppe Zen has done it again with this spectacular cheese bar in the Mercato Comunale. Let them arrange a tasting plate of some of the…

  • Casa Ramen Super

    Porta Garibaldi & Isola

    Luca Catalfamo's second ramen restaurant really is super. Not least because you can book a seat here. His velvety-smooth ramen is still the highlight, but…

  • Alice Ristorante

    Porta Garibaldi & Isola

    The one-Michelin-starred restaurant of talented chef Viviana Varese and sommelier and fish expert Sandra Ciciriello is the pride of Eataly's foodstore…

  • Entrance to Un Posto a Milano at Cascina Cuccagna.

    Un Posto a Milano

    Milan

    This country cascina (farmstead) was a derelict ruin until a collection of cooperatives and cultural associations returned it to multifunctional use as a…

  • The Gattullo shop window

    Gattullo

    Milan

    Since small-town ‘Peppino’ Gattulo opened this pastry shop in 1961, it’s been one of Milan’s most beloved locales. Packed in the mornings when it pumps…

  • Exterior of Carlo e Camilla

    Carlo e Camilla in Segheria

    Milan

    A 1930s sawmill has been repurposed to grand effect. With chandeliers and shimmering light, it creates a theatrical ambience for modern Italian cuisine by…

  • Diners outside the Il Marchesino restaurant.

    Il Marchesino

    Duomo & San Babila

    Gualtiero Marchesi, one of Italy’s most revered chefs, presides over a traditional dining room at La Scala. Chairs upholstered in deep crimson evoke the…

  • Berberè pizzeria street view

    Berberè

    Porta Garibaldi & Isola

    Fantastically light pizzas and craft beer are what Calabrian brothers Matteo and Salvatore promise you, at this pizzeria housed in an atmospheric 1950s…

  • Inside the Alberto Marchetti gelateria.

    Alberto Marchetti

    Milan

    Turinese Alberto Marchetti is making a name for himself with this artisanal ice-cream chain that’s spreading across Italy and abroad – for good reason…

  • Pasticceria Cucchi window

    Pasticceria Cucchi

    Milan

    Little has changed at this historic Milanese pasticceria (pastry shop) founded in 1936. Its interior brims with old-world charm; waiters wear formal…

  • Rovello restaurant entrance

    Rovello 18

    Milan

    Take heart from the dresser stacked with venerable bottles of Barolo as you enter this unpretentious osteria (tavern). It’s an indication of the smart,…

  • Entrance to Ratanà restaurant

    Ratanà

    Porta Garibaldi & Isola

    Located in a lovely Liberty building that once belonged to the railway, this neo-bistro run by chef Cesare Battisti and sommelier Federica Fabi turns out…

  • The La Bettola di Piero restaurant exterior

    La Bettola di Piero

    Milan

    With its red-and-white checked curtains hanging at the windows and twee, textbook trattoria interiors, you may fear this restaurant is a stereotype too…

  • T’a Milano restaurant exterior

    T'a Milano

    Duomo & San Babila

    Chocolatiers Tancredi and Alberto Alemagna’s Milanese outlet is a beautiful space. Aside from the counters crammed with delectable chocolates, the dining…

  • La Brisa restaurant exterior.

    La Brisa

    Corso Magenta & Sant'Ambrogio

    Discreet, elegant and exquisitely romantic. Push past the velvet curtain and the maître d' will guide you to a table beneath centuries-old linden trees in…

  • The famous Giannasi chicken stand

    Giannasi dal 1967

    Milan

    Since 1967, Dorando Giannasi has been serving Milan's best roast chicken from his food stall on Piazza Buozzi. Marinated in a secret herb mix and broiled…

  • Crowd outside De Santis.

    De Santis

    Corso Magenta & Sant'Ambrogio

    Sandwiches here are so damn good you may eschew restaurant dining just to sample that panini with prosciutto, spicy goat cheese, pepperoni, aubergine and…

  • Late-afternoon at Sissi

    Pasticceria Sissi

    Milan

    There’s nothing more Milanese than breakfast at Sissi. Yet, with its bright pink walls, vintage posters and an Italian-Senegalese owner with a big…

  • Outside the NÚN cafe

    NÚN

    Milan

    Picking up on the demand for vegan, vegetarian and raw food, this clever contemporary kebab bar serves up hearty wraps stuffed with seasonal salads,…

  • The entrance to Cracco

    Cracco

    Duomo & San Babila

    Following a tumble from grace and a lost Michelin star, Carlo Cracco is back with a four-storey food temple in the Galleria. You can nibble brioche by…

  • Window of pastry shop Giovanni Galli

    Giovanni Galli

    Milan

    This is the place fancy Milanesi go to buy nonna her favourite sweets, such as marron glacés, Boeri (chocolate-covered cherries) and chocolate pralines…

  • The entrance to Dim Sum

    Dim Sum

    Milan

    This first-class gourmet Chinese restaurant showcases the very best Lombard ingredients in a refined Chinese menu. The restaurant is super sleek with chef…

  • Pasticceria Knam shop entrance

    Pasticceria KNAM

    Milan

    Opened by celebrated German chef Ernst Knam, this is one of the most famous pastry shops in the city. Known for its unusual flavour pairings and chocolate…

  • Inside Gelateria Giova.

    Gelateria Giova

    Milan

    Having opened a few years ago with little fanfare, Gelateria Giova is now suddenly on the list of some of the best gelaterie in the city. Named for the…

  • Gelato Giusto street view

    Gelato Giusto

    Milan

    This gelateria is a temple to Lombardy's luxurious milk products: everything here is 100% natural, handmade and locally sourced. What's more, owner…

  • Exterior of Gelateria Paganelli

    Gelateria Paganelli

    Milan

    This old-school gelateria has been in the business of ice cream since 1930. Opened by his uncle Ugo, Francesco now maintains the shop's reputation with a…

  • Fioraio Bianchi Caffè shop sign and window.

    Fioraio Bianchi Caffè

    Milan

    This former florist’s shop is great for a light French-influenced lunch, or an excellent aperitivo (pre-dinner drink) among the flowers. Dinners are fresh…

  • Entrance to Da Giacomo

    Ristorante da Giacomo

    Milan

    This sunny Tuscan restaurant with its custard-coloured walls and Reseda green panelling serves up an elegant, unpretentious menu featuring largely fish…

More destinations you need to see