Aperture

🍩 Vergani, a Milanese confectionery company with 80 years of tradition, introduces a new vegan-friendly Carnival sweet, "Chiacchiere vegane". These vegan treats maintain traditional texture and flavor, using flour, water, sugar, and sunflower seed oil. Vergani also offers classic Chiacchiere, ancient cereal variants with spelt, rye, barley, and a pistachio glaze option. The company is known for its 20-hour dough rest and high-quality ingredients, ensuring digestibility and friability. Vergani, awarded the Ambrogino d’Oro in 2014, exports to Europe, Canada, the USA, Brazil, Australia, and China, upholding Milanese tradition and Made in Italy quality.

🍴 Chef Marcello Trentini announces the closure of Magorabin in Turin on its 22nd anniversary via a Facebook post, citing the unsustainable nature of contemporary fine dining, except for some exceptions. Magorabin boasted a Michelin star for 13 years. Trentini now prioritizes personal time, relationships, and quality of life over the unwritten rules of gourmet dining. His dishes will continue at Casamago, a bistro established 6 years ago. Trentini embraces a change, replacing his chef's jacket with a t-shirt and apron, but still cooks with heart and soul.

🍕 Fratelli Coppola, a restaurant chain founded by siblings Katia, Ciro, and Antonio, celebrates 20 years with the opening of its fifth location in Lombardia, at Cantù Asnago, near Milan. Affiliated with Associazione Verace Pizza Napoletana (AVPN), with Ciro as the regional Brand Ambassador, the new site offers a variety of Neapolitan dishes and boasts three rooms with a total of 180 seats. The interior was designed by architect Guglielmo Rubino, reflecting a contemporary style with traditional Neapolitan elements.

☕ On February 19th, Treviso's historic Caffetteria delle Rose, run by Hausbrandt, reopens under new management by entrepreneur Sabrina Delli Carri, known for I Sapori del Grano since 2017. The caffetteria will feature Pugliese bread and focaccia made with re-milled durum wheat, and espresso prepared with Hausbrandt 100% Arabica Gourmet Columbus coffee. This makes six unique Hausbrandt-owned caffetterias in Treviso, offering original blends, Theresianer beers, Col Sandago wines, Martin des Orsyn champagne, and Ronnefeldt teas.

🏦 Palazzo Talìa, a 5-star hotel, opened in spring 2024 near Piazza di Spagna and Fontana di Trevi. Housed in a 16th-century building, once home to humanist Angelo Maria Colocci, now features 26 luxury rooms and suites designed by Marianna Lubrano Lavadera and Laura Feroldi. The interiors, boasting 60 marble artworks and a Roman Menade statue, were curated by Luca Guadagnino, marking his first hôtellerie project. A standout, the Terrace Suite, offers a 66-square-meter terrace. The hotel also includes Tramae restaurant, Bar della Musa, and a Spa with Roman-inspired marble and majolica.

🌳 Italians showed a strong affinity for Barbados, the youngest republic in the world since 2021, with a remarkable +37% increase in arrivals from Italy in the past year, totaling about 3,700 visitors. In 2024, the island, rich in historical identity and recognized for its UNESCO heritage capital, Bridgetown, attracted diverse tourists, including families and sports enthusiasts. Weekly packages, including flights and resort stays, start at €1,980 per person, with 4 or 5-star accommodations like Sandals Barbados. Barbados boasts one of the best air connections from Italy to the Caribbean, with direct flights via British Airways, Virgin Atlantic through London, or Condor through Frankfurt.

🏠 Romeo Roma celebrated its opening on Friday, February 14 with a high-profile event featuring institutional, business, cinematic, and artistic personalities. The Italian luxury hospitality group's identity is built on design, art, archaeology, gastronomy, and wellness. The restoration by Pritzker Prize winner Zaha Hadid revealed archaeological finds, including a 17th-century shrine, visible through the pool's glass floor. Alain Ducasse, a Michelin-starred chef, oversees the open-to-public hotel restaurant, blending French haute cuisine with local tradition and a sensory culinary experience amidst private art collections and striking architecture.

🏨 London, Istanbul, and Dublin lead European cities in new hotel room openings in 2025, with London adding more than 5,600 rooms, Istanbul 3,920, and Dublin just under 3,200. Overall, Europe will see nearly 107,000 new rooms this year, including those opened early in 2025. CoStar reports a total of about 171,000 rooms under construction, 86,000 in final planning, and 163,000 in initial planning stages.

🍕 Rodrigo, a traditional Bolognese cuisine restaurant established in Bologna in 1949 by Roberto and Riccardo Capua, has opened a new location at Via Savona 11, Milan, between Darsena and Navigli. Chef Giacomo Matera offers dishes like Tortellini in capon broth, Tagliatelle al ragù, and Cotoletta alla bolognese. Sous chef Pedro Zibordi prepares fresh seafood at a fishbar. The mixology bar, managed by Michele Martirani, revives 80's classics such as Black Russian and Negroni.

🍪 Gay-Odin's historic branch at Via Chiaia 237 in Naples has excitingly reopened, showcasing its restored original splendor. The chocolate shop, founded by Isidoro Odin and Onorina Gay, both from Piedmont, began in the late 19th century. The Gay-Odin brand was established in 1894, with a factory inaugurated in Via Vetriera in 1922, designed by architect Angelo Trevisan in the Art Nouveau style and declared a National Monument in 1993. The Maglietta family, leading the company since the 1980s, is credited for the revival. The restoration preserved the original Art Nouveau furniture and décor, including a naturalistic cocoa-inspired relief. The store offers a range of chocolates and a new old-style ice cream counter serving Gay-Odin's cold creams.