Best restaurants in Milan: where to eat on your first trip

Every place below is still open according to a source dated 2025 or 2026: the MICHELIN Guide Italia 2026, Gambero Rosso’s 2026 pizza guide, The Infatuation’s Milan reviews or the venue’s own site. Facts were checked on 5 October 2026. Prices and hours change, so check the restaurant’s site before you go.

Where to eat in Milan at a glance

What you want	Where to go	Why it’s on the list
Ossobuco and risotto	Trattoria Masuelli San Marco	Century-old family trattoria (The Infatuation)
Milanese classics in Isola	Ratanà	In the Michelin Guide, flagged “Worth Queueing For”
Risotto with marrow	Trippa	Michelin Bib Gourmand
Pizza	Confine, Dry Milano	Tre Spicchi, Gambero Rosso 2026
Special dinner	Enrico Bartolini al Mudec	Three Michelin stars
Cheap lunch near the Duomo	Luini	Panzerotti since 1949
Aperitivo	Camparino in Galleria, Bar Basso	Campari’s own bar; birthplace of the Negroni Sbagliato
Panettone and pastry	Pasticceria Cucchi, Cova	Historic pastry shops (founded 1936 and 1817)

Best restaurants in Milan for classic Milanese food

Trattoria Masuelli San Marco, Viale Umbria 80 (Porta Romana side). A century-old family trattoria. The Infatuation singles out its ossobuco with risotto alla milanese, and it also serves cotoletta. Book through its online reservation system or by phone at 02 5518 4138.

Ratanà, Via Gaetano de Castillia 28 (Isola, across from the Bosco Verticale). In a former cinema and tram depot. The Michelin Guide lists it at €€ and flags it “Worth Queueing For”. Order the old Milan-style risotto with gremolata and roast jus, or mondeghili, the Milanese meatballs. There is a quick lunch called “schiscèta”. Book directly with the restaurant (+39 02 8712 8855).

Trippa, Via Giorgio Vasari 1 (Porta Romana). A Michelin Bib Gourmand at €€, known for tripe, Milanese risotto with grilled marrow and vitello tonnato. The Infatuation says to reserve weeks ahead. Opening days differ between sources, so check before you plan around it.

Al Matarel, Via Laura Solera Mantegazza 5 (Brera). An old-school trattoria for ossobuco and risotto, where The Infatuation notes the bone marrow comes with a little spoon to scoop it out.

Trattoria Madonnina, Via Gentilino 6 (Ticinese, near the Darsena). The Infatuation calls it Milan’s oldest trattoria. It serves ossobuco with risotto alla milanese and gremolata, plus the thin “elephant ear” cotoletta, and has outdoor seating. It has been under new management since 2023.

Il Liberty, Viale Monte Grappa 6 (near Porta Nuova). In the Michelin Guide at €€€, in an Art Nouveau palazzo. The kitchen is creative, but it makes a premium Milanese veal cutlet with fresh-cut chips. Closed Sunday.

Best pizza in Milan

Pizza in Milan is mostly Neapolitan style. Gambero Rosso’s Pizzerie d’Italia 2026 guide gave its top rating, Tre Spicchi, to four Milan pizzerias.

Confine Pizza e Cantina, Via San Sisto 6 (Cinque Vie). The highest Milan score in the 2026 guide, 96 points. In February 2025 a margherita cost €12-18, signature pizzas €20-30 and tasting menus started at €30 for four courses. It closes for part of August.

Dry Milano, Via Solferino 33 (Brera). Tre Spicchi with 93 points. Pizza with cocktails, open Tuesday to Sunday 6pm to 2am. Book online or call +39 02 6379 3414.

Crosta (Porta Venezia). Tre Spicchi with 90 points, a bakery and pizzeria in one.

L’Antica Pizzeria da Michele, Piazza della Repubblica 27. The Milan branch of the Naples pizzeria open since 1870, with only four pizzas on the menu. Its own site talks about “the ritual of the long wait”, so expect a line.

Berberè has six Milan branches, including Isola (Via Sebenico 21), Navigli (Via Vigevano 8) and Centrale (Via Cappellini 18/A). It uses organic stone-ground flours and a 24-hour sourdough, and you can book each branch online.

For pizza by the slice, Spontini has served its tall, crisp-based trancio since 1953 and now has branches across Milan, including one near the Duomo.

Michelin-starred restaurants for a special dinner

The MICHELIN Guide Italia 2026, presented in November 2025, lists one three-star, three two-star and 14 one-star restaurants in Milan. Bartolini, Aprea, Cracco, Contraste and Iyo are in Michelin’s top price band (€€€€).

Restaurant	Stars	Where	Notable for
Enrico Bartolini al Mudec	3	Via Tortona 56, top floor of the Mudec museum	Milan’s only three-star; closed Sunday and Monday
Seta by Antonio Guida	2	Via Monte di Pietà 18, Mandarin Oriental	Three tasting menus; closed Sunday and Monday
Andrea Aprea	2	Corso Venezia 52, top floor of Fondazione Luigi Rovati	Menus of 4, 6 or 8 courses, one built on Neapolitan classics
Cracco in Galleria	1	Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II	Reworked classics such as vitello alla milanese
Contraste	1	Via Giuseppe Meda 2, near the Navigli	Chef Matias Perdomo’s two tasting menus
Iyo	1	Via Piero della Francesca 74	Japanese; closed Monday

At Cracco, the Michelin Guide warns that the window tables over the Galleria need booking well ahead. Tasting-menu prices were not published in the sources checked, so look at each restaurant’s site before you book.

Cheap eats and quick lunches

Luini, Via Santa Radegonda 16, a minute from the Duomo. A family-run panzerotti counter since 1949. There are no reservations and lines are normal, so order the classic mozzarella and tomato and eat it hot on the street.

De Santis, Corso Magenta 9. Pressed panini for over 60 years, a short walk from the Last Supper.

Bar Quadronno, Via Quadronno 34. Opened in 1964 as Milan’s first paninoteca (sandwich bar).

Panino Giusto started on Corso Garibaldi in 1979 and now has 10 Milan addresses.

La Ravioleria Sarpi in Chinatown makes dumplings, and The Infatuation lists it as walk-in friendly.

If you are planning a full day around these, our one day in Milan itinerary shows where lunch fits between the sights.

Where to go for aperitivo

Aperitivo is the early-evening drink with snacks before dinner. Milan is the home of Campari, and the Negroni Sbagliato was invented here.

Camparino in Galleria, Piazza Duomo 21, at the entrance to the Galleria. Davide Campari opened it in 1915, piping chilled soda water up from the cellar for Campari and soda. The ground-floor Bar di Passo is a stand-up bar open Monday to Friday 9:30am to 11pm, Saturday 10am to 11pm and Sunday 9:30am to 9pm. Upstairs, Sala Spiritello serves lunch, aperitivo and dinner, and the Sala Gaspare Campari is by reservation only.

Bar Basso, Via Plinio 39 (Porta Venezia side). According to Il Sole 24 Ore, bartender Mirko Stocchetto created the Negroni Sbagliato here in 1972 by reaching for sparkling wine instead of gin. It comes in an oversized glass with one big ice cube, and walk-ins are welcome.

Nottingham Forest, Viale Piave 1. Dario Comini’s cocktail bar, formerly on the World’s 50 Best Bars list, known for clarified and fermented drinks. The 50 Best listing puts the average cocktail at about US$14. Open Tuesday to Sunday evenings.

Bar Luce, inside Fondazione Prada, was designed by Wes Anderson and serves panini and pastries. Walk-ins are welcome.

Pastry and panettone

Pasticceria Cucchi, Corso Genova 1. Founded in 1936 and open daily 7:30am to 9:30pm, for breakfast brioches, lunch and aperitivo.

Pasticceria Cova, Via Montenapoleone 8. Founded in 1817 next to La Scala, where Verdi was a customer, and on Montenapoleone since 1950. Panettone is a house classic.

Marchesi 1824 sells panettone all year, and The Infatuation notes that walk-ins are welcome. Check the official site for its Milan shops.

Pavé has four Milan shops, including Via Felice Casati 27, with a traditional panettone in its range.

Iginio Massari, one of Italy’s best-known pastry chefs, has a Milan shop listed on his official site, and sells panettone online from €29.

By Italian law, a product sold as panettone must be naturally leavened with sourdough and contain at least 16% butterfat, 4% egg yolk and 20% raisins and candied citrus peel.

What to order in Milan

• Risotto alla milanese: saffron risotto made with beef marrow, broth, butter and white wine. It appears as “risotto giallo” in an 1829 cookbook.
• Cotoletta (costoletta) alla milanese: a bone-in veal cutlet in egg and breadcrumbs, fried in butter and traditionally at least 3 cm thick. The thin, beaten-out version is called “orecchia d’elefante”, elephant ear.
• Ossobuco: braised cross-cut veal shank with the marrow bone, finished with gremolada (garlic, parsley and lemon zest). It is classically served with risotto alla milanese.
• Mondeghili: meatballs made from leftover meats, soaked bread, egg and cheese, fried in butter.
• Cassoeula: a winter stew of Savoy cabbage and pork cuts.
• Busecca: tripe soup with beans. Nervetti: boiled veal cartilage served cold with pickled onions and peppers.
• Michetta: the hollow, star-shaped bread roll of Milan.

How eating out works in Milan

Coperto. Most bills include a per-person cover charge for the table setting, linen and bread, usually €1 to €5. It is legal only if the menu shows it clearly. If it is not on the menu, you can refuse to pay it.

Tipping. Tipping is not compulsory in Italy. Paying a tip by card is still uncommon (only about one card terminal in four supports it), so leave cash if you want to tip.

Meal times. Restaurants usually serve lunch from 12:30 to 2:30pm and dinner from 7:30pm. Many places close one or two days a week, often Sunday or Monday: Bartolini and Seta close both, Iyo and Dry Milano close Mondays.

Booking. Book a few weeks ahead for popular places such as Trippa, and much further ahead during Design Week, when The Infatuation says Bistro Aimo e Nadia books up months in advance. Luini, Bar Basso, Bar Luce, Marchesi 1824 and La Ravioleria Sarpi do not need a booking.

August. Many restaurants close around Ferragosto (15 August) for anything from a few days to a month. In 2026, Berton closed from 8 August to 2 September, for example. If you travel in August, check each restaurant before you go.

For what a day of eating out adds to your budget, see how much a trip to Italy costs. To fit meals around the sights, our things to do in Milan guide lists opening hours, and the 2 days in Milan itinerary suggests where to eat along the way.