TAmong the restaurants to try in May, two Milanese addresses: IZUopened 2 years ago in Corso Lodi, was included in the 2026 Michelin Guide as one of the best Japanese restaurants in the city.
There is always one in Milan Seafood wine shopa blue and white restaurant specializing in fish and shellfish, but also “strong” on fresh pasta. And a super cellar with over 200 labels.
In the center of the beautiful and ancient Pietrasanta (Lucca), 10 minutes from the sea of Forte dei Marmi, there is Philipa warm and welcoming design venue overlooking the sixteenth-century Palazzo Masini-Luccetti. The proposal is “simple and spontaneous”a classic Italian cuisine, attentive and respectful of raw materials.
In the heart of Val Tidone, a few kilometers from Castel San Giovanni, there is the small village of Bilegno. Palta (in Piacenza dialect it means tobacconist) is the heart of the town and offers a local cuisine, lightened, revisited with high quality ingredients. It is the kingdom of Isa and Monica Mazzocchi and boasts one Michelin star.
In Candeli (Florence), inside the suggestive Villa La Massa, the restaurant is located Verrocchiowhich offers an authentic journey into the Tuscan gastronomic tradition. Each dish is born as a tribute to the land, to the familiar aromas and to the recipes handed down over time, transforming tradition into a contemporary and refined experience.
Beautiful, good and refined, nothing to do with the “Chinese-Japanese” restaurants we are used to, both in terms of cuisine and in terms of environment and service. In the lively Corso Lodi, in the southern area of Milan, IZU it opened, in its current form, a couple of years ago: a series of rooms, with absolutely good taste furnishings and lighting, a beautiful bar and a toilet that is “obligatory” to visit.
The cuisine, which the owner Jin Yue Hu “chose”, has a strong Japanese origin with strong international influences. Obviously there are the classic ceviche, nigiri and gyoza, but also dishes such as the shoe, a tribute to Italian tradition, consisting of three cuts of tuna with karashi sauce and nori seaweed chips in tempura and the silk road, a rice paper roll with a triumph of seasonal vegetables. The service was pleasant and very efficient.
Over €70 drinks not included.
IZU
Corso Lodi, 27, Milan
tel. 02 59900221
izumilano.com
Seafood wine shop, Milan
Entering this very pleasant white and blue room you can clearly smell the scent of the sea. Few tables, well set and a serene atmosphere with very attentive service from the friendly Giovanni d’Alterio. Seafood wine shop offers a “simply refined” cuisine, based on fish and shellfish, but also “strong” on fresh pasta.
Among the dishes, the Royal boat stands out (in the photo), with an excellent assortment of shellfish and seafood, raw seafood, Catalan-style prawns, tagliolini with cuttlefish ink, and very light mixed fried food. Super cellar with over 200 labels.
About €70 for so much goodness.
Seafood wine shop
via Luigi Federico Menabrea 12, Milan
tel. 02 6883224
enotecadimare.it
Filippo, Pietrasanta (Lucca)
In the heart of the beautiful and ancient Pietrasanta, 10 minutes from the sea of Forte dei Marmi, there is Philipa design venue, very well furnished in a modern, but warm and welcoming style. A few well-spaced tables and a few outside tables with an extraordinary view of the sixteenth-century Palazzo Masini-Luccetti.
The proposal is “simple and spontaneous” – says Filippo, owner of the restaurant, a classic Italian cuisine, attentive and “influenced” by the raw materials. If, for example, a type of fish is not on the market, it is replaced on the menu. Dishes such as spaghetti alla guitar with cicadas, oyster water and Senise pepper triumph; baked celeriac with vegetable broth; and the salt race. Among the desserts, the Danubio: a brioche with zabaglione. Tuscan wines.
Over €70 drinks not included.
Filippo Pietrasanta
via Padre Eugenio Barsanti 45, Pietrasanta (Lucca)
tel. 0584 70010
filippopietrasanta.it
La Palta, Bilegno (Piacenza)
In the heart of Val Tidone, a few kilometers from Castel San Giovanni, there is the small village of Bilegno: ancient houses, farms, green and flowery fields. Palta (in Piacenza dialect it means tobacconist) is the heart, in the physical and “moral” sense of the town. A beautiful structure with large windows overlooking the countryside and some beautiful antique furniture, white tablecloths and crystal glasses. It is the kingdom of Isa and Monica Mazzocchi: in the kitchen, the first, in the living room, the second.
In La Palta you can enjoy one local cuisine, lightened, revisited with high quality ingredients. The pasta menu is splendid: 10 pasta dishes with delicacies such as Tortello alla lastra with wild herbs, pickled persimmon, garden herbs and cracklings and, of course, the tortelli from Piacenza. On the menu, sweetbreads in butter with salad and fried capers, lamb with fresh broad beans and rocket pesto or artichoke caponata. La Palta has a Michelin star.
Over €90 drinks not included.
Palta
Frazione Bilegno, 67, Borgonovo Val Tidone (Piacenza).
tel. 0523 862103.
lapalta.it
Il Verrocchio, Candeli (Florence)
The restaurant Verrocchiolocated within the suggestive Villa La Massa – five star hotel and member of The Leading Hotels of the World – is led by chef Stefano Ballarino and offers an authentic journey into the Tuscan gastronomic tradition.
His cuisine elegantly reinterprets the flavors of the territoryenhancing local and seasonal ingredients selected with great care. Each dish is born as a tribute to the land, to the familiar aromas and to the recipes handed down over time, transforming tradition into a contemporary and refined experience. From fresh homemade pasta to raw materials coming from small producers in the surrounding hillsup to the great classics such as Florentine steak or Gallo Cacciatoreeach proposal tells in a concrete and authentic way the deep connection with the territory.
An extensive and quality wine list completes the experienceaccompanied by an attentive, professional service with attention to every detail. On €85 drinks excluded with tasting menu available at the price of €130 including wine pairing.
Il Verrocchio restaurant
at Villa La Massa
via della Massa 24, Candeli (Florence)
tel. 055.62611
villalamassa.com