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Eataly is easy to present. Its reputation – well deserved – has largely expanded beyond the borders of the city of Turin. Eating at Eataly means enjoying dinner or lunch side by side with French, English, Americans… and the list could go on.

Eataly also presents itself through a bilingual Web site – http://www.eataly.it – equipped with a fascinating image gallery.

What I would like to give you, as an enthusiastic visitor to this mall of the Italian tastefulness, is a very quick overview of its sensations, because you don’t visit Eataly just to go shopping and buy all kinds of specialties (sweets, pickled products, spices, wines, salami and cheese, pasta, meats, fish) but also to savor the delights of a culture rooted in the food products of an entire population. At Eataly - splendidly located just a few steps from the Po river, the Patrocinio di San Giuseppe ( Patronage of St. Joseph) church with its beautiful bell tower (visible from the Eataly entry square) and facing the dynamic commercial center “8 Gallery Lingotto” – everybody is master of his/her own time, at a quiet Internet point, in a comfortable armchair, paging through interesting books, viewing pleasant “author’s fakes” hung in different sectors, at literary debates and events, sampling restaurants for all tastes, and an excellent ice-parlor, a cafè that reminds of days gone by, when frenzy didn’t play master. I suggest going downstairs and immersing yourself in the perfume of the cellar containing inviting cheeses. It is an “unforgettable vision” that has the flavor of ham and salami, hung awaiting the right moment to be “picked”.

Personally I find these two sections (cheeses and salami) the most fascinating and “holy” places of the entire complex, but that’s only my point of view.

Museo Carpano (free entry), dedicated to the historical Turinese aperitif, the Vermouth “Punt e Mes”, -- one part bitter one part sweet -- is another section on the first floor worth a visit. (Eataly is located in in an old Carpano factory.) Go and see it, you won’t be disappointed. Then, if you wish to buy the famous aperitif, you may find it in the Eataly cafè, properly displayed on wooden shelves.

I expect we’ll talk again about this important Turinese cultural hub – I like to think of it in this light – which is really comprehensive and capable of exercising a unique attraction towards every visitor. Whenever you come to Turin, don’t forget, then, to devote some of your time to this genial mixture of tradition and flavors.

Andrea Biscàro
(Translated by Ernesto R. Milani)