TRete is elegant, cosmopolitan, asburg and anarchist, skeptical and visionary. Here Italy meets the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Central Europe lives with the Slavic echo, coffee is a social ritual that has nothing to do with the rest of the peninsula.
Mandatory stages during walks to discover the most significant points of the city? Piazza Unità d’Italia, Audace pier, Roman theater, Riccardo arch, Cathedral of San Giusto, San Giusto Castle including the panoramic descent on foot. But we must always keep in mind: we are in a city that never completely grants, changes face to every season, never loses its mystery. In the spring, when the light sets out on the clear stones of the vast Piazza Unità, there is the feeling of being on the border between two worlds: in front of the Adriatic -the very loving according to Gabriele D’Annunzio -, the Central Europe behind, and in the middle the breath of a city that is not trivially a place, but a mood.
The unmissable coffees of Trieste
In no other city, the culture of coffee is rooted as in Trieste. The historical premises, with decorated ceilings and ancient mirrors, are authentic secular temples of sociality and culture. Places where time seems to have stopped, between the tan of the spoonfuls and the scent of the most aromatic blends. Trieste’s historic cafes are true literary salons. They sat there, and they wrote in front of steaming cups, James Joyce, Italo Svevo, Umberto Saba. At the counter and the tables there is a special language: the dark coffee is called “black”, the stained is “chief”, if you want it in the glass you have to say “in B”.
Tommaseo coffee
Founded in 1830 in Piazza Niccolò Tommaseo, it is the oldest in the city and bears the name of a famous literate and patriot. The environment is elegant, with Venetian mirrors and refined furnishings. Over time, the “Milanese” Stendhal, the inevitable Italo Svevo, James Joyce and Umberto Saba (triad of cultural deities who make Trieste only to appoint them) and Claudio Magris, a great scholar and writer, today … the place proposes a selection of precious and sweet coffee such as the Viennese Sacher Corte and the Linzer Takes, served on porcelain dishes, welcomed. decorated. It also offers a catering service with dishes inspired by the Austro-Hungarian tradition (Trieste has long been the port of the Empire) and has a room dedicated to exhibitions and events.
Coffee of the mirrors
Caffè degli Specchi in Trieste. (Photo: Anja Cop)
We are in the spectacular Piazza Unità d’Italia, the largest in Europe: inaugurated in 1839, the Caffè degli Specchi is the historic living room of Trieste. Sitting on his tables means enjoying a privileged view. Here too, the thought goes to the tutelary gods like Joyce – lived in Trieste because he taught English in a city of trade – and Swabian, at the registry office Aron Hector Schmitz, who went to lessons by the author of “Ulysses”: the British language served him in his travels in London, where he took care of the affairs of the family paints of the family. The two writers, like other intellectuals and artists of the Triestine cultural community, spent hours writing and chatting – also in English, of course – among the fumes of cigars and the aromas of coffee. Order, in homage to these memoirs, a slice of prenitz, dessert based on dried fruit and spices.
Antico Caffè San Marco
More than a simple coffee: a library, a cultural center and a meeting place for intellectuals. Founded in 1914 by Marco Lovrinovich, the San Marco coffee is a liberty -style jewel, with brass chandeliers, ceilings decorated with coffee leaves and Veronese red marble tables. In the years of the First World War, he was closed by the Austrian authorities because he was considered a meeting place for Italian irredentists. Today, between shelves full of books and the scent of freshly ground coffee, you can savor an espresso with a strong character or a Moroccan, accompanied by one of the best sacher cakes in the city.
Caffè Urbanis
Open in 1832, it was born in Piazza della Borsa as a pastry shop and still retains an elegant and welcoming atmosphere today. The original mosaic floor, with mythological and marine symbols, tells the story of a coffee that has experienced almost two centuries of Trieste. Perfect for an aperitif, the Caffè Urbanis is known for well -performed cocktails and for a wide selection of small artisan desserts, including the mini lincies and shortcrust custles stuffed with custard. During the weekend, he comes alive with live music and DJ sets, keeping alive the tradition of the Trieste aperitif.
Trieste, Faro della Vittoria. (Photo: Marco Milani)
Melting pot of flavors and different kitchens: high and pop
Wandering around the city in spring means crossing centuries of meetings and clashes: the Grand Canal of the Teresian villagewith the Orthodox churches and the statues of poets, the airy squares that look at the gulf, the alleys with the taverns that smell of Jota and a stuck cod. Here the Trieste dialect sounds like a dough of Veneto, Slovenian and German, and the kitchen is a journey between Hungarian Goulash, Austrian Strudel and Sardoni in Savor.
In the panorama of the high cuisine Triestina stands out Harry’s Piccolo, two Michelin starsled by the stainless duo formed by the chef Triestino Matteo Metullio (born in 1989) and by the Belluno Davide de Pra (born in 1985). After years of successes in the heart of the Duchi d’Aosta hotel, the restaurant recently moved to the Palazzo Dreher headquarters, bringing the impeccable style and his author cuisine with him. The new project includes an exclusive and collection atmosphere: a large counter for six people, where chefs personally serve the dishes, and six traditional tables, two of which in a private room, for a total of about 26 covers, as well as an elegant dehors. A format that combines the gastronomic experience with a direct dialogue with the brigade, making each dinner an event. Among the dishes of the room stand out the smoked capoSanta, caviar, Bernese sauce, radicchio and orangesynthesis between elegance and intensity. Harrysotto, the risotto, which expresses the philosophy of the chefs: tomato water, plankton, anchovies, basil and capers. A dish that plays on marine shades and acidity, without losing the creaminess of a great risotto.
The pepper buffet
Opened in 1897 with the name of Pepi I was (Pepi l’Oveno) linked to the curious Trieste habit of renting supernames to everyone, in the central Piazza della Borsa. In this small crowded place you sit down in elbow with other patrons to taste the famous mixed pork boiled meat. Solid steaming boilers keep tasty cuts: tongue, shoulder, bacon, cotechino, hot cooked ham called Porzina. Everything is served on overflowing dishes, accompanied by sauerkraut, mustard and a generous grated Kren, the horseradish that cleans the mouth. It is a triumph of fleshy perfumes and spices, next to boiled meat, in the buffets there are other typical recipes. The Jota is the symbolic soup of the city: beans, potatoes and Capuzi Garbi (cabbage in brine, similar to German sauerkraut) boiled together with smoked pork ribs. The result is a dense and acidula soup, which blends Italian Habsburg and Cohaburity Tradition.
Trip and lunch in Muggia
A village with an irreplace-venete features is the Baia di Muggia to be reached by sea with the green dolphin. In the picturesque dock, it seems to enter the Venetian calls and squares. Even dialect, costumes and gastronomic traditions allow to leak an intense past shared with the Serenissima. In Muggia we recommend a lunch at Trattoria al Castello (Climb of the walls, 11), born in 1992 thanks to Breda and Miro, who over the years has joined her son Alessandro. Today the family tradition continues with Alessandro and his wife Lorella. And it is she who provides us with the best definition of the place, telegraphic but of great effectiveness: “Trattoria with traditional cuisine, fresh fish and family environment!” The sea is the masters in Meni, which boasts the Sardoni in Savor as a strong dish, without thorns, prepared following the recipe of Mrs. Breda.
A dip in the culture and nature of Trieste
Trieste Miramare (photo by Fabrice Gallina)
At the foot of the Miramare Castle, the itineraries of a protected marine area unfoldthe only marine reserve of the Region. The most fascinating path is located under the sea, a few meters from the shore. It’s called Seawatching, we start from the protected beach and swim among the fish desks and marine molluscs, between the cliff and the seabed accompanied by the qualified guides of the WWF. The equipment is provided by the Sea Watching excursion center at AMP Miramare.
Visit to the Rosenfeld sponge the oldest European sponge of marine sponges still existing. https://rosenfeld.it
Living Trieste also means walking on the hunt for Unobtainable books; Here are three stages.
The first is the Umberto Saba Antiques Library which reopened a few months after a year of work in the pedestrian center a few steps from the writer’s statue.
Grocery store 28an antique bookcase specialized in rare volumes and first editions https://www.libreriadrogheria28.it/la-libreria
Zuckerman antiques bookcase https://www.zuckerman.it
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