(The Restaurants of the Gambero Rosso Guide)

OSTERIA DEL TRENO

via San Gregorio, 46
tel. 026700479
CLOSED Saturday and Sunday; at lunch
COVERED 60
€ 35 wines excl.
CREDIT CARDS: MCard, Visa, POS
TRATTORIAS A place with many years of honorable activity behind it probably not celebrated enough this stainless and timeless railway tavern, which welcomes warmly, tells stories and anecdotes, conquers anyone with a Milanese and Lombard cuisine presented with philological rigor and a pinch of irony which makes it absolutely contemporary. The environment is reminiscent of an old provincial club (but there is a Liberty room for those who like a bit of glitz and for private events), and the stories and wisdom of a thoroughbred and extraordinary host like Angelo Bissolotti help to create an absolutely priceless Old Milan atmosphere. The card changes with the passing of the seasons and is the result of a close and daily relationship with breeders, farmers, small artisans of the area, who provide ingredients and credibility. We start with the "mixed" which combine cured meats and cheeses (the Milanese, the Souris, the Val d'Orcia), the mondeghili, the magutt cappuccino with Pandino robiola cream. Among the first courses the very classic Milanese risotto triumphs, but a mention goes without doubt to the exquisite alpeggio ravioli with apples and Vezzena. Moving on to the main courses, here is the Piedmontese beef in a batting or marinade and the hen "in the manner of the Gonzagas", for example. Finally, the advice is to leave a place for desserts, truly neoclassical, difficult to find elsewhere: then the ricotta puff pastry with Chantilly, or the peaches with amaretto, two of the most appropriate choices. At lunch you will find a quicker but not sloppy offer (nervetti in salad, tongue in green sauce, Ionza tonnata in the old way). The cellar is rich and intelligent, and also animates the fun evening aperitif with cipetin (the Milanese cicchetti). The service is essential and empathetic, "dialoguing". A real train of desires: don't miss it.