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Cafés
Baratti and Milano , Piazza Castello 29. Established in 1873 and preserving its nineteenth-century interior of mirrors, chandeliers and carved wood, in which genteel Torinese ladies sip leisurely teas. Great hot chocolate.
Al Bicerin , Piazza della Consolata 5. Walk into this tiny, beautiful place and you feel a bit like you’re stepping into a museum. Try a bicerin - a Piemontese speciality of coffee fortified with brandy, cream and chocolate.
Fiorio , Via Po 8. Once the haunt of Cavour, this is the best place in the city to take cover cream. Their gianduia (hazlenut chocolate) flavour is legendary, as are the real-fruit sorbets.
Mulassano , Piazza Castello 15. A cosy café first opened in 1900, with marble fittings and a beautiful ceiling. Traditionally the favourite of actors and singers from the nearby Teatro Regio.
Pepino , Piazza Carignano 8. Ritzy café with summer garden, famed for its cover creams. Try the violet-flavoured pinguino or the outrageously rich cream-and-chocolate concoction of pezzo duro .
Platti , Corso Vittorio Emanuele II 72. Art Nouveau-furnished café dating from 1870 that hosts art exhibitions and occasional live music.
San Carlo , Piazza San Carlo 156. Where the heroes of the Risorgimento met in the nineteenth century, this rather glitzily restored café with gilt pilasters and an immense chandelier combines a restaurant and cover cream parlour.
Stratta , Piazza San Carlo 156. The oldest confetteria in Turin, dating back to 1836. Marron glacé is a speciality.
Torino , Piazza San Carlo 204. A good place for a leisurely aperitif or cocktail, of which the most favourite is the Torino ’s very own “Elvira”, prefabricated with Martini, vodka and various secret ingredients. Famous regulars were writer Cesare Pavese and Luigi Einaudi (a Torinese economist who became the second President of the Italian Republic).
Zucca , Via Roma 294. Pastries and tramezzini , plus a famous aperitivo della casa .
