I’m having a fabulous gourmet lunch in one of the oldest restaurants in the world, beneath the shimmering chandeliers of the regal salon of Ristorante Del Cambio, the prime dining room of Turin since it opened in 1757.
It’s one of the many hidden secrets of a city that’s reinventing itself as a capital of gastronomy, cinema and art in a subtle manner that keeps it unspoilt and off-the-radar. Few visitors even realise that Turin rather than Rome was declared the first capital of modern Italy, whose fractious autonomous regions were united by Count Camillo Cavour in 1861. Cavour used to do much of his wheeling and dealing right here in the Cambio’s gilded salons, opposite the grand palazzo housing the first Italian parliament.
Like Turin, the Cambio (www.delcambio.it; seven-course tasting menu €85 [Dh346]) has recently undergone a complete renovation, with a new Michelin-starred chef, Matteo Baronetto, and food lovers can now choose between his subtle interpretations of traditional Piedmontese dishes such as la finanziera, a delicate recipe of veal sweetbreads and cockerel crests, and innovative creations that pair tender kidneys with a creamy sea urchin sauce.
Across the table is Enrico Martino, one of Italy’s most respected photojournalists, born and bred in Turin, who tells me: “When I was growing up here, this really was the Italian version of Detroit, a grim Motor City where half the population worked for Fiat. All I wanted to do was escape and travel the world.
“Today, though, I have grown to love my hometown because it has changed totally, rediscovering its gastronomic heritage through the slow food movement, which is based just nearby at Bra, and by attracting tourists who realise this is a more relaxed, human city to visit than the likes of Florence and Venice.”
Before exploring the city's vibrant food scene, there's time for some sightseeing, and it's certainly true that to enjoy the impressive art exhibitions and permanent collections in Turin's grand palaces – the ornate baroque Palazzo Madama (www.palazzomadamatorino.it) and Palazzo Reale (www.ilpalazzorealeditorino.it) – I don't have to brave the queues that can make a trip to Florence's Uffizi resemble an assault course. Even the newly reopened Egyptian Museum (www.museoegizio.it), showcasing the greatest collection of mummies, sarcophagi and pharaonic artefacts outside Cairo's Museum of Egyptian Antiquities, has been intelligently modernised and spaciously redesigned to allow for leisurely, uncrowded visits.
The only line I decide to brave is for the lift that zooms up to the 167-metre summit of Mole Antonelliana, an astonishing needle-like tower that's home to the spectacular interactive National Museum of Cinema (www.museocinema.it). The view is unparalleled, from the snow-topped Alps in the distance to the majestic River Po slicing through a city centre of palaces, churches and wide, Manhattan-like boulevards, lined with Turin's hallmark covered arcades, the portici.
Not far below the Mole, I can spot the hundreds of stalls that form Porta Palazzo, Europe’s biggest open-air market. This is where the whole city does their daily shopping. I plunge into this teeming foodie paradise to experience a genuine slice of local life.
The Porta Palazzo’s 800 stalls form a bubbling ethnic cauldron where Maghreb traders banter in Piedmont dialect, their stalls a cornucopia of fennel and artichokes, purple broccoli and juicy melons, alongside more than 100 local farmers who come in each day to sell their own organic herbs and vegetables, pungent cheeses and rare white truffles from Alba. Surrounding all this is a rambling bazaar touting everything from fake T-shirts and handbags to vintage fashions.
Two new trends catch my eye at Porta Palazzo – street food and halal eateries. Funky food trucks selling gourmet burgers and veggie stir-fry are parked outside the covered market’s entrance, while inside, Signor Beppi of Pescheria Gallina sells a freshly fried fritto misto of prawns, sardines and calamari. Nearby, the sumptuous belle époque Umberto I Galleria has been brought back to life with exciting street food cafes such as Cucina Popolana (panino and salad €5 [Dh20]), the brainchild of the market trader Marco Bruscone, serving rustic cucina povera (“poor kitchen”) dishes such as panzanella, a delicious salad of bread soaked in olive oil, juicy tomatoes and fiery raw onion.
Simple kebab eateries around the market, such as Sindbad (Via Milano 10; lamb tagine €10 [Dh41]), offer merguez, tabbouleh and chorba, while in a quiet backstreet I discover Dar Al Hikma (Via Fuichetto 15; www.daralhikma.it), Turin's Italo-Arab Cultural Centre. It's an oasis of calm with a cool, tiled tea room, hammam and Ristorante Al Andalus (lunch buffet €7 [Dh28]), packed at lunchtime with a cosmopolitan crowd feasting on a buffet of couscous and tagines.
Porta Palazzo borders a maze of narrow backstreets that form the Quadrilatero Romano, the ancient Roman city centre, which has been transformed from a rundown neighbourhood into the favoured address for chic boutiques and contemporary art galleries.
Foodwise there are plenty of new locales, too, from the hip Crudo Osteria Contemporanea (Via Palazzo di Città 7; mains €15 [Dh61]) to Verdi d’Indivia (Via Barberoux 5; salads €7 [Dh28]), an authentic vegan kitchen. Crudo’s menu is fun and creative, especially the signature sushi alla Piemontese, with wafer-thin slices of marinated Fassone beef, raw salsiccia di Bra, a piquant veal sausage, with crunchy baby courgettes and the best fresh hazelnuts I’ve ever tasted – not surprisingly, though, as Nutella is made just nearby.
The Quadrilatero eventually opens out onto a series of grandiose baroque piazzas, each one marked by one of Turin's sumptuous historic cafes. The Bicerin (Piazza della Consolata 5; www.bicerin.it) opened its doors in 1763, and with its ornate mirrored walls, very little has changed since – including the drinks invented here, served today in every Turin cafe. Il Bicerin is a lethal mix of espresso coffee, thick chocolate and frothy cream that delivers the ultimate caffeine kick, accompanied by an irresistible selection of cakes and pastries.
The immense Piazza San Carlo is known as Il Salotto di Torino, the city’s living room, but walking into the imperious Caffe San Carlo (Piazza San Carlo 156) feels more like entering a palatial ballroom with its colourful frescoes, glittering Murano chandeliers, golden pillars and intricate inlaid marble floor. Come here at 6pm for a lavish buffet of delicate canapés.
Hidden beneath a portico on the monumental Piazza Castello, Caffe Mulassano (Piazza Castello 15; www.caffemulassano.com) is an intimate art nouveau jewel resembling a private club where everyone seems to know each other. All through the day, even a cappuccino is accompanied by a delicious plate of tramezzini sandwiches (which the family claim were invented here), anchovy toasts, juicy olives and salted almonds.
Visiting Turin isn't just about the historic centre, and on my last day, Torinese friends advise a 45-minute bus ride into the countryside to visit the Venaria Reale (www.lavenaria.it). At the same time as Louis XIV was putting the finishing touches to the splendour of Versailles, Duke Carlo Emanuele of Turin was building an equally opulent country residence – a decadent pleasure palace the Duke termed a simple "hunting lodge". Though not terribly impressive from the outside, the Venaria takes your breath away on entering its towering frescoed galleries and opulent salons. Even more impressive are the 17th-century gardens, spreading over 3,000 hectares, including a "potager royal" of exotic plants, fruits, herbs and vegetables.
On the way back into town, the taxi passes by the futuristic new stadium of the football club Juventus and its state-of-the-art football museum (www.juventus.com), and drops me at the immense Piazza Vittorio Veneto, one of Europe's largest squares and the perfect place to say goodbye to Turin. The square is packed with people, cafe terraces teeming out over the square's cobbled stones. Bars vie with each other to offer the most tempting buffet banquet of pasta, risotto, pizza, salads, cold meats and tiramisu. And for those who choose the hip Drogheria (Piazza Vittorio Veneto 18; www.la-drogheria.it), an ancient pharmacy, there's no need to even plan for later, as the bar soon turns into a nightclub.
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