Turin Restaurants

Turin is especially notable for its cuisine; indeed, the city has something of a love affair with food and this is evident in the 800 restaurants that can be found within the city. Venues range from small, typically Italian restaurants to large establishments with national reputations for excellence.

Local cuisine

One reason that eating is such a pre-occupation in Turin is that the local food is just so good. The city is especially famous for its chocolate and it is hailed as being the original creator of the chocolate bar as we know it today. However, gianduiotto is the creation that the city is most celebrated for, which is a delicacy made from cocoa and hazelnut paste. Chocolate as a drink is also highly popular, with regular hot chocolate and whipped cream just one of many varieties available. Marocchino and bicerin are among the more popular alternatives.

Turning to savoury cuisine, pasta dishes are de rigueur of course and local dishes include tajarin, agnolotti and cappelletti as well as staple Italian favourites. Cheese is also big in Turin, with a large number of varieties available, and is commonly eaten with wine, of which the selection is equally extensive. Turin is also famous for its breadsticks, known locally as stirà, which according to legend, were once used to coax Vittorio Amedeo II out of sickness when he was just a boy.

Where to eat

Restaurants can be found throughout the city and a main eating zone is not easily definable. If you’re in the city centre, you won’t struggle to find a venue and are more likely to have problems deciding which restaurant to eat at as the selection is so vast. It will cost you if you want to sample the haute cuisine of some of Italy’s finest chefs otherwise head for the small backstreet establishments where you’ll find food made in the same way it has been made for many centuries.