Milan, Italy - Luini

Yes, that's the line!

You can't argue with a bakery that has been in business for 125. If you find yourself by the Duomo in Milan, head down a small side street to the now famous Luini, which sells piping hot panzerotti, baked or fried. Don't be daunted by the line of 50 people in front of you, it moves quickly and service is efficient. (For you Bostonians, Luini seems to be the Galleria Umberto's of Milan!)

Giuseppina Luini came to Milan from Puglia with her family in 1949 and opened the bakery in Via S. Radegonda, 16. She was the first to have the idea to bring panzerotti, a typical stuffed savory pastry from Puglia, to Milan. In the first few years, the business focused on making bread, supplying to the most important restaurants and hotels in the city center, but Signora Giuseppina was always interested in the traditional foods of her region. One day while going through the recipes handed down from her grandfather, she found the family recipe for panzerotti.

She began frying up a few. The Milanese initially weren't accustomed to the taste of the panzerotto, but in just a few years, it would become a staple food item. There are many different varieties, from the classic cheese and tomato to sweet panzerotti filled with ricotta cheese and chocolate. 

The classic mozzarella cheese and tomato panzarotto

Grab a bag of these hot, delicious panzerotti and eat them while strolling by the Duomo and Galleria. Yum!

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