In one of the most upcoming areas of Milan, that of Porta Vittoria, once the district of the historic butchery of the city, the Trattoria del Nuovo Macello keeps intact all the charm of the old neighborhood trattorias; an ancient flavor that the Traversone family has proudly preserved since 1959 and which at the same time has been able to innovate by opening up to the best contemporary Italian cuisine.

One of the “secret” addresses most loved by the Milanese, it was born from an intuition of grandfather Giovanni Traversone who, of Genoese origins, after changing various professions, at 60 decided to stop in Milan and open a business that could also be suitable for his family. After seeing several spaces for sale he chose this one in via Lombroso because, noticing the worn threshold, he thought that, if the trattoria had always attracted many customers, it must have been a “lucky” place.

And so here he gave life to one of those typical post-war joints open all day that served the workers of the neighborhood for lunch but which also operated as a cafeteria with a billiard room and TV. At that time, in fact, very few families had it, and the only way to watch it was to go to the local bar.

We are famous throughout Lombardy for our Cotoletta: for this traditional veal-based recipe we follow a very specific preparation starting from the meat maturation which lasts at least 40 days

(Paola Traversone)

All the furnishings in the room once belonged to the family, donated by grandmothers or aunts; absolutely nothing has been bought, not even the beautiful bar counter at the entrance of the restaurant which was already there, original from the 1950s, as it belonged to the previous management.

Ever since then the welcoming family atmosphere has never changed and today there are the grandchildren of Giovanni to carry on the tradition: Paola, with her husband Claudio, maître d’, and her brother Giovanni, chef of the restaurant. Besides keeping the historical recipes ultra-solid, like their Colotoletta alla Milanese, one of the best in Milan, they managed to open up to experimenting with new dishes based on excellent ingredients, especially from the territory, procured by their trusted suppliers.

Like the meat cuts, each of them selected among the best producers of that particular cut or animal, such as the Moncucco pigeon, the lamb from the Bergamo valleys, the guinea fowl of Miroglio, the fish from the neighborhood market, the Vicidomini pasta, or the rice of the Cascina Vione farm.

Just think that, intrigued by the word of mouth about the excellent cuisine of the restaurant, the great Gualtiero Marchesi, at the time the most famous chef in Italy, one day came by surprise for lunch to try the dishes of the restaurant. He was so impressed that the Nuovo Macello became one of his favorite places in Milan, to the point that he also created a beautiful relationship with the Traversone family that lasted until the death of the chef in 2017.

So alongside the typical Milanese recipes always on the menu, such as saffron risotto, mondeghili meatballs or tripe, you can also taste deliciously more creative dishes such as pigeon ravioli with chestnuts, blackberries and mushroom sauce or shrimp ceviche with green apple juice, oranges, fennel and chilli.

Trattoria del Nuovo Macello is definitely a cult address where you will always feel at home and cuddled, a prerogative increasingly precious nowadays as it’s more and more difficult to find places like this in contemporary Milan.

The Secret

The Nuovo Macello is famous throughout Lombardy for its Cotoletta: the veal meats are prepared by the renowned Bianchi Butcher and follow a very specific process starting from the meat maturation which lasts at least 40 days.

Useful Info

Trattoria del Nuovo Macello
Via Cesare Lombroso 20
20137 Milano
Tel. +39 02 59902122

First courses: 15 euro
Second courses: from 22 euro
Lunch set menu: 20 euro