The Geographic Location of Milan – A Strategic Spot in the Heart of Europe
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History of Milan
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History of Panettone
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Milanese cuisine
Ice cream in Milan – a subjective list of ice cream parlors
I fell in love with Italian gelato over 18 years ago. Although visits to gelaterias had always been a regular part of trips to Italy, it wasn’t until friends I was staying with brought home a container of fresh gelato (sold by weight) that I truly understood what real Italian gelato is!
Gelateria Marghera
In a city like Milan, there are many very good ice cream shops – gelateria in Italian – but for me, to this day, the sentiment remains with Gelateria Merghera located on the street of the same name near Piazza de Angeli (M1).
Therefore, many times my girlfriends and I ended our evening there although it was often crowded until late at night, especially in the summer. So I would recommend this place if anyone was staying in the area.
There are many ice cream shops worth visiting and it is very difficult to choose which is the best, so below I suggest only some of them:
Il Massimo del Gelato
Il Massimo del Gelato at via Castelvetro 18, a historic ice cream shop in Milan near Corso Sempione and the park of the same name, and not far from the Arch of Peace. It has been attracting chocolate ice cream lovers for years, and it has many varieties, from 100 percent dark chocolate to cinnamon or peperoncino. Flavors of flavored cocoa, rum, and cherry or salty pistachio are not to be despised. In both the almond and fruit flavors you can feel the pieces of fruit. Open every day except Mondays from 12 pm to midnight.
Gelateria della Musica
Gelateria della Musica – via Lodovico il Moro 4 – near the church of San Christoforo sul Naviglio (canal district) is this music ice cream shop. They sell ice cream there only with fresh ingredients, so many of the flavors are seasonal. The specialty is all fruit flavors, but you can also find unusual ones such as mojito flavor, cottage-citrus flavor or bread flavor with butter and marmalade. Open on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Sundays from 12:30 pm to 11 pm and on Fridays and Saturdays from 12:30 pm to midnight.
Bottega del gelato
In via Giovan Battista Pergolesi 3. Between Piazza Lima and Piazza Loreto (the same one where Benito Mussolini’s corpse was hanged) is the Bottega del Gelato ice cream shop. About 50 different flavors to choose from. Very popular are fruit sorbets: pear, apricot, plum, mulberry, tropical flavors, or fruit-filled ice cream. Of the creamy flavors, the “semifreddo” (warm ice cream) flavored with coffee and pine fruit – pinole – is worth recommending. Open every day except Wednesday, from 9 am to 10 pm and even midnight in summer.
Gelateria Sartori
In piazza Luigi di Savoia next to the Central Station – Stazione Centrale is Antica Gelateria Sartori. The ice cream shop, or rather a kiosk, beloved by Milanese has been there since 1947. It has a few unusual flavors, as it specializes in the classics, of which we can confidently recommend hazelnut (nocciolato) with pieces of dry fruit, almond, pistachio, or dark chocolate flavor. Sicilian granita with brioche is also very popular. Open daily from 12:30 pm to midnight.
Gelato Giusto
In the area of Corso Buenos Aires, while shopping, it is worth visiting an ice cream shop: Gelato Giusto at via San Gregorio 17 – a perfect place for gourmets and ice cream fetishists. Delicious ice cream without hydrogenated vegetable fats, artificial colors or preservatives, produced exclusively with milk from Lombardy cows and the best seasonal fruits. Open from Tuesday to Saturday from 12:00 to 22:30 and on Sundays from 12:00 to 21:00.
I lived in Milan for 18 years, and it was there that I came to know the city’s daily life best - not just its landmarks, but also its rhythm, its habits, and its less obvious sides. Today I live in Wrocław, but I still return to Milan regularly.