Standing out from a bevy of other Milanese dishes is the casoeula, a glorious mixture of the spare parts of the pig—pork ears, chops, bacon, sausages—cooked in broth with cabbage, celery, carrots, onions, garlic, and plenty of pepper. It is reminiscent of the potées of Burgundy, and quite as heavy. We in America have our own ideas about stuffing a turkey, but the Milanese have a savory filling which will hold its own against the fiercest competition. Their tacchino ripieno is stuffed with a mixture of the giblets of the bird, ham. sausage, apples, prunes, chestnuts, small onions, truffles, grated Parmesan cheese, pepper, nutmeg, eggs, and dry white wine, and the resultant aroma defies description. It seeps through every tissue of the bird and deserves to be called absolutely ambrosian. One rarely encounters meatballs in Italy, despite their supposed affinity for spaghetti, but you find them in Milan under the name of polpette, and they arc very presentable. Some overseas visitors exhibit less enthusiasm for another Milanese favorite, busecca coi borletti, a tripe soup with onions, fresh white beans, and a savory dosage, of herbs, but you really should try it yourself just once, and make your own decision.
The epicurean traveler in Lombardy has a wide and uneven field before him. Milan has sumptuous restaurants, magnificent cooking. The Lake District has nostalgic beauty and good hotels. The flat plain is uninspiring, but it is dotted with cities rich in historical interest — Bergamo, Brescia, Pavia, Cremona, and Mantua—all with adequate hotels and food. Suppose we take the areas up in that order.
MILAN
This sprawling, vibrant city is no the most restful place in Italy, nor the most beautiful. Urbanism and the war have claimed many of its picturesque old quarters, and the vivid tempo of the city is such that a casual sightseer, guidebook in hand, becomes a rather harried individual. In spite of the confusion, he is richly rewarded. Fundamentally. Milan is a city of superlatives. It is the busiest in Italy, and the most prosperous. There is nothing in Italy to compare with its astonishing marble cathedral, the most imposing Gothic edifice south of France. Incidentally, the passing gourmet is confronted by a strong temptation in the cathedral square. Just why doesn't someone think of eating these fat. greedy, aggressive pigeons, hand-fed and overstuffed by tourists with the very best corn? A profane thought, but an irresistible one.
The Teatro alla Scala is the foremost shrine of operatic music in Italy, and a visitor will never forget the hours spent there. The same is true of Leonardo da Vinci' immortal fresco, “The Las Supper,” which still glows, a bit feebly perhaps, in Milan' church of Santa Maria delle Grazie. In the Castello Sforzesco, the immense stronghold of one of Italy' most powerful medieval families, the tourist finds one of the larges castles in the world and a museum of extraordinary merit, and so it goes. These are only the highlights. Countless visitors come to this intense metropolis of 1,600,000 inhabitants for another reason—its annual trade fair, also the largest in Italy. Everything considered, it would seem that the businessman, the opera addict, and, we are glad to add, the gourmet, get the best break in Milan, provided they make sure about reservations in one of the city' modern hotels. This word of warning is born of sad experience. We arrived in the city blissfully unaware of the shortage of rooms, and finally slept overnight in Como, thirty miles away!
Superlatives can be applied with equal candor to the restaurants of Milan. On any basis—appointments, cuisine wines, service—they are among the finest in Europe. We are doing the restaurants an injustice in citing only these few. and our omissions are heartbreaking.
RISTORANTE SAVINI—Galleria Vittorio Emanuele
This is the patriarch of Milanese restaurants, and the ruling aristocrat as well. We were about to call it the “Café de Paris of Italy, ” but alas, the real Café de Paris closed its doors last September after a century at the top of Parisian gastronomy, and so the comparison falls fiat. Savini has occupied its privileged spot under the glass roof of Milan' famous galleria for more than half a century, and is still strongly reminiscent of the belle époque of the 1890'. Everything is impeccable—the setting, the service, and the food, which pleasantly enough features the local specialties and not “international” dishes alone. If you wish to savor risotto, minestrone, osso buco in gremolada, or piccata di vitello in the company of Milan' best-dressed women and most charming citizens, this formal, expensive, mondain restaurant is the answer.
RISTORANTE BARCA D'ORO Via Borgospesso 18
We think that discriminating travelers from across the seas will take a particular shine to the Golden Hark, a plush and pleasant place with the promise of the red-carpet treatment evident in every one of its low-ceilinged rooms. The clientele is cosmopolitan and civilized, generously flecked with pipe-smoking industrialists in British tweeds. The Golden Hark is located on a little side street which runs parallel to the populous Via Manzoni and it is not hard to find. It would be a perfectly wonderful place to give a small dinner party. The menu, which is written in both Italian and French, is a joy to behold. There are daily regional specialties, together with a masterful panorama of dishes from la cuisine classique. Our own choice was a pilaff with sole, mushrooms, and curry, followed by kidneys flamed in brandy, served from a handsome silvery saucepan. For wines, we chose an Orvieto and a soul-warming Valpolicella. The occasion couldn't have been more pleasant, and the check, for all the amplitude of our long-lingering luncheon. was under seven dollars for two.
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