I was recently blessed with a four-day trip to Italy: two days in Milan, one day in Como, and one in Venice. Although quick and unexpected, we made the best of our time there—especially when it came to eating.
Day one: Espresso, too much pasta, and more espresso
The day we landed, it was about noon in Milan, and we’d been traveling for around 20 hours. By the time we got to our hotel, it was still an hour too early for us to check in, but the staff was kind enough to hold our bags for us while we sought out a place to caffeine- and carb-load (shout out to my husband’s Italian, which carried us through the trip).
We walked across the street and stumbled into Soqquadro CityMusic, aiming to escape the Milanese rain. There, we enjoyed our first Milanese espresso—a double shot for Shaun, and a macchiato for me.
From there, we went a few doors down to i Tentacoli Da Gegè, where I was determined to try my first plate of Italian pasta. Unfortunately, my primitive Italian meant that I accidentally ordered three courses of food, and since Shaun wasn’t hungry yet, the battle was all mine to fight.
In the end, the food won—or maybe I did, considering I took it back to the hotel and scarfed the rest of it down at midnight.
Aside from my late-night snack, the food kept me sated all day as we casually made our way through the streets of Milan, starting at the Duomo.
However, we did stop for another caffeine fix, where Shaun got another double-shot espresso and I got…probably the one thing they had on the menu for Americans.
Day two: Pastries, pizza, gelato, and…espresso
For our second (and first full!) day in Milan, we started the day at Ca’puccino, a cozy little cafe down the street from the Duomo. I had a delicious breakfast of prosciutto and cheese on a croissant, with a side of espresso macchiato and another double-shot for Shaun.
Fun fact: I usually HATE cow’s milk, but in Italy, I drank it daily and had zero complaints! I also tend to stay away from bread and cheese in America, but there’s just something about whole ingredients and no…added poison? Whoddathunk!
After a few hours of some of the most incredible shopping I’ve ever experienced, we’d both worked up a pretty significant appetite and decided to try some pizza—an obvious Italian must. We tucked into GustaMi, a quaint little cafe with pizzas, pastas, and a mouth-watering array of baked goods.
This filled us up for the day, but I still managed to find room for gelato at Aromino. Sadly, this was not pictured—simply devoured. It was pistachio, and it was perfect.
Day three: A Como cuisine
We wrapped up day two by stopping at a little grocery store, where we stocked up on: yogurt, which I ate for breakfast on day three; and prosciutto, mozzarella di bufala, focaccia bread, arugula, and olives, which we planned to take with us on our day-four train ride to Venice.
But first, day three.
After a quick yogurt cup at the hotel, we sought out early to catch the train to Como, where we planned to spend the afternoon. Shoutout to ME for navigating us—my public transportation skills from living in NYC almost weren’t a match for the Trenitalia, but I got us there unscathed!
After about an hour on the train, we pulled up to Como—a gorgeous little town, and my favorite day of the entire trip. We were both starving, so we started sniffing around for lunch, making our way through the tiny cobblestone streets bustling with locals, tourists, and merchants.
We ended up at Piazza Roma, a cavernous cafe where we sat on the sidewalk over bowls of steaming, delicious pasta—the best, we agreed, that we had on our entire trip.
And then, of course, espresso.
After an afternoon on Lago di Como, where we walked, talked, laughed, and recorded ourselves dancing and doing tai chi (no days off!), we made our way back to the train and back to Milan, where we found ourselves, once again, starving.
We decided to head back to Brera Street, where I’d found that delicious pistachio gelato the night before. We’d been in awe at the appearance of the street: with twinkly lights, cobblestones, and busy restaurants with blazer-adorned patrons lazily spilling out onto the sidewalks, it felt like the quintessential Milan dining experience.
Unfortunately, we were sort of underwhelmed by our restaurant of choice: Casa Fiori Chiari. It wasn’t bad at all—our minds just weren’t blown when we’d hoped they’d be, although the olive oil was exceptional.
Also, we really enjoyed this pillar.
Day four: Pistachios from Milan to Venice
Our last day was spent traveling to Venice, and then exploring the city for the few hours we had in it before it was time to fly home.
After another croissant (this one pistachio, and the best either of us have ever had!) and espresso at Ca'puccino, we headed back to the train station, this time heading east toward the city of canals.
Then, following a delicious picnic on the train, we were in Venizia, where we quickly found THE BEST pistachio gelato of the entire trip (unfortunately, I have NO idea what the name of this place was).
Our last meal was our best of the entire trip as well. We were determined to find polenta, a staple of Venetian cuisine that I’d never tried before. Sadly, we didn’t get the name of this place either as we just happened upon it and tried our luck after reading the street menu—but MAN, it didn’t disappoint.
Beef carpaccio, polenta, pistachio-crusted salmon, carbonara (Shaun’s is better though)...wrapped up with espresso and a perfect slice of torta al limone that was not pictured, but absolutely demolished.
This trip to Italy was a dream come true, and it was an honor to eat my way through Milan, Como, and Venice with my soulmate and best friend.
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