My Milan Guide

Milan takes a while to open up. It is a city of courtyards, so most of what is good is behind a door you would walk past. This is the short version of what I would tell you over the phone.

Where I stay

A small hotel in Brera
Twelve rooms, a courtyard, and breakfast that runs late. I put family here when the apartment is full, and I have never had to apologise for it.

The one near the canals
Less polished, more fun. Ask for a room at the back—the front rooms hear the aperitivo crowd until one.

Where I eat

The trattoria I never book
Risotto alla milanese, half a litre of the house red, and the same waiter for eleven years. Go at one, alone, with a book.

Sunday lunch, out of town
Forty minutes north and worth the drive. We order too much, sit until four, and drive home in the dark in winter.

Coffee and shopping

The bar with three stools
Standing, at the counter, one euro twenty. I walk twenty minutes for it and I would do it again tomorrow.

A vintage room, by appointment
Where my grandmother’s gold chain got its match. Write ahead, say what you are looking for, and bring cash.