PIEDMONT CHRONICLE - L'Arvista Piemontèisa

From the piazza of the Corpus Domini follow Via Palazzo di Città until you reach the Piazza Castello, a top flight tourist site: the church of San Lorenzo, the Royal Palace, the Madama Palace, the royal armory, the royal library, the Regio theater (on the opposite side of the square when arriving from Via Palazzo di Città). Piazza Castello – a human-scale, pedestrian-only square – is right in the middle of the city center, where important streets converge --- Via Garibaldi, Via Pietro Micca, the elegant Via Roma (which merits an itinerary of its own) and the beautiful Via Po --- but this is another story that we’ll tell later on. Remaining in Piazza Castello, let’s stroll its lovely porticoes on the side opposite the gate of the royal palace, studded with shops and bars for every taste and every pocketbook: clothing stores for boys and girls, the Feltrinelli bookstore, a McDonald’s for the kids and, for lovers of good taste, two places that remain from the Turin that once was: Baratti & Milano and Mulassano. Don’t miss having breakfast at both places, they are authentic pleasures! The large windows at Baratti & Milano overlook Piazza Castello and on the architectural masterpiece that is the Subalpina Gallery, which connects Piazza Castello to Piazza Carlo Alberto. Stop in this little jewel of a space, take some time to look, to take photos and enjoy every corner, from the magnificent interior of Baratti & Milano, to the antique furniture shop, “Memorie del Passato,” to say nothing of the Gilibert antiquarian bookshop (with exceptional windows) and the small store named, appropriately “Petit.” Also in the gallery you will find the historic “La Casa del Libro” bookshop, the “Romano” cinema, “Ottica Gallery,” an elegant eyewear boutique, and the “Arcadia restaurant” that knows well how to reconcile the traditions of Piemonte with those of Japan!

Andrea Biscàro