The gourmet's guide to Europe

Milan In Milan, the town of white marble and. veal cutlets, most of the restaurants of any note are in or near the 23 8 The Gourmet's Guide to Europe great arcade, that wonderful covered promenade in which an interesting crowd — the Bersaglieri officers, with flowing plumes of cocks’ feathers in their hats, the cavalry men, with their helmets of the old Roman shape, the pretty ladies, and peasants from the moun- tains, wondering at all they see — goes backwards and forwards. The Savigni and the Biffi face each other on either side of one of the passages which run out Savigni, Galleria from the central circle. The Savigni, Vittorio Emanuele if one judges from the constant flow of patrons which go in and out of its doors, is the most popular of all the restaurants in Milan. At 8 o’clock in the evening there is rarely a seat vacant there. The bustle of the place is a little surprising to any stranger who has come from a northern country, for a fire or a revolution could not excite the waiters more than their ordinary duties do. A baked fowl and potatoes, a dish of the day, is suddenly thrust under one’s nose, or a rich cake is placed on the table, or the comprehensive bill of fare is thrown down as if it was a challenge to a duel. There is a table always kept for the officers of the garrison, of whom the Artillery seem to be the principal patrons of the Savigni. A pretty girl brings a basket of flowers, offering the blossoms for sale. A man with a stubbly head of hair comes round with a great sheaf of the Sera newspaper, and cigarettes and post-cards are all offered as one eats one’s meal. There are two or three dishes of the day, and 1. 1.20 is the usual price for each dish. Grated Parmesan, the cheese being one of the products of the locality, is offered with all soups, and with many of the more solid dishes as well. The last time I dined at Savigni’s I ate one of the local soups, of sage and rice and the Italian paste with a sprinkling, of course, of Parmesan, a frittura of brains, some Gorgonzola, some fruit, and drank half a bottle of Capri Bianco, and my bill was 1. 4.50* Italy 239 The Biffi is a larger establishment than the Savigni ; its front part is a cafe in which a band plays in the evening, and the back part is the res- Biffi, Biffi taurant, where the food is much the Galleria same as at the Savigni. There are tables outside the Biffi, and as in the evening the curtains are tightly drawn at all restaurants, it is not a bad plan to eat one’s dinner in the Savigni, and to take one’s coffee afterwards in purer air outside the Biffi. The Cova, next door to the Scala, never seems to have had its front repainted, and it is 'grey in appear- ance, with pillars on its front. The cova, Via portion of the establishment facing the Giuseppe Verdi road consists of a pastry-cook’s shop and tea-rooms, the hinder part is the restaurant. It has a courtyard which forms a garden, where in the summer a band plays, and where one can sit after dinner or can dine in hot weather. The Orlogio, just behind the cathedral, is apt to be stuffy on hot evenings, but I have found it in cool weather always a pleasant restaurant at orlogio, Piazza which to dine, though I am bound to del Campo Santo say that my opinion in this does not coincide with that of all other men.