Pisco

At the Arco della Pace, in summer, you can breathe holiday air. When it passes 1, one wonders if it will arrive at the end of the line directly on the rocks. Dress and coral-colored lipstick, it takes very little, because it is the atmosphere that makes us more beautiful. People around us speak in a thousand of different accents and languages, toast and laugh. It is our city, which every summer makes people fall in love more and more, because it is capricious, changeable, frank and jaunty; because it loves dancing and having fun; because it is busy, tireless, joyous and alive; it always goes fast but finds the well-deserved time to devote to beauty: to its own and to that reflected in the eyes of the beholder. Our friends invited us to the seaside: at 9.00pm, they reserved a table for us at Pisco Milano.

The Arc is in front of us, illuminated and majestic; we turn left, walk a few meters and here we are: crossing the threshold, we are warmly welcomed inside a fascinating galleon, where the colors and hospitality are those, unmistakable, of the Amalfi coast. Brilliant mosaics of majolica come into elegant contrast with the solid parquet of dark wood; wicker lamps woven into the net, giving off a warm and suffused light, illuminate the slate walls decorated with murals made with chalk strokes. The open kitchen is the light point that, strategically placed at the center of the restaurant, separates the two rooms and discreetly catalyses the attention of the curious guest. The environment promises well and we guarantee it: these are not empty promises.

The undisputed super star of the menu are raw food: oysters, scallops, sea urchins, amberjack tartare and truffle chevices are just some of the delicacies on offer. Among the first dishes, stand out the gold drawn spaghetti with lobster and fresh orecchiette pasta with anchovies from the Cantabrian Sea with broccoli and bread crumbs. Among the latter dishes, it is delicate and refined sea bass in potato crust; rustic and genuine, the mixture of sea and grilled vegetables is perfect if accompanied with a refreshing salad of cherry tomatoes and basil. The greedy surrender more than willingly to the temptation of a dessert: we recommend the mascarpone ice cream with red fruit reduction or, while you are there, the Pisco chocolate cake, so delicious that you can also divert the sailor Ulysses from the seductive song of the legendary sirens.

A toast to the limoncello and we are ready to set sail … oops, we wanted to “say goodbye”. It is a shame to leave, because the friendliness of the service makes the stay extremely pleasant. Pisco is a small island that not only boasts excellent cuisine, but also a remarkable hospitality. Getting up from the table, we almost expect to have the sea at our feet, or to hear the pleasant sound of the waves, as we do with the shells. If you are dreamers, let yourself be carried away … and imagine what our Milan would be like if you had – as well! – the sea.