Cafes of Turin: Some Places where Ordinary Folks have their Coffee and Lunch

The thing I love most about Turin is, the locals take their coffee seriously. And they do it in style too, with healthy salads, delicious pastas, fruit salads and other goodies on the side.

1. EXKI, Turin 
Around the corner of my hotel near some of Turin's most exclusive shopping areas, is a self-service cafe-restaurant which offers tasty food made of organic ingredients and good coffee made with Illy coffee beans.

Although Italy is well known for its gourment culture, the concept of organic farming and bio-food have only recently taken hold in the social consciousness of city-dwellers in Italy. Maybe that's because most Italians still eat relatively well - nutritious and healthy - compared to their Northern American counterparts, and the taste and variety of agricultural produces available in Italy's markets are still very 'local' in terms of origins, unlike some other industrialised countries in western Europe such as UK or the Netherlands, where a large proportion of fruits and vegetables are no longer home-grown; hence there is no such great urgency in Italy to convert to the religion of organic supremacy, or to promote organic foods by all means.

Value for Money in Turin: Follow the Students

As someone once told me: the best way in Italy to find a value-for-money place for great food at bargain prices is to follow the students. And I have been following this rule for years, so far it has almost always been proven right. In fact, this rule applies to many places all over the world, but that is another story ....

I simply have to recommend this nice little place in the centre of Turin, on the glamourous shopping boulevard of Via Po, near the university buildings. Given its location on one of Turin's busiest and most well-patronized throughfares, I would have expected the prices for a decent meal in this locality to be quite steep. But no, thanks to the presence of a sizeable student body attending lectures in university buildings nearby, many small cafes and restaurants are present which offer delicious buffet dinners at inexpensive prices. And they are really good value for money, even by my stringent standards (and I can be a very fussy customer, mind you).

The cafe with self-service dinner buffet is located at the long arcade that runs along both sides of Via Po. I was first attrcted to it thanks to the sign outside the entrance, which says 'A Drink and Buffet for 8 euros'.

Espressamente Illy, Turin: Illy Caffe in the Heartland of Lavazza

Italy's contribution to modern civilization comes in the form of its roasted coffee beans. Italian coffee beans are known throughout the world, and are the preferred beans of choice amongst coffee experts from Barcelona to Rio.There are dozens of coffee bean roasters in Italy, and each region has its own preference in terms of strength, aroma, and crema. For me, my favourite brand of roasted coffee beans is Illy Caffe, with its elegant aroma and nutty, caramel-like velvety texture and smooth, subtle aftertaste. 

In recent years, Illy has been busy setting up a series of modern and stylish concept coffee bar/bistros all over the world known as Espressamente Illy. I am a big fan of these Espressamente Illy bars, and have always made an effort to locate them wherever I go. The good thing I love about Espressamente Illy is, in addition to wonderful espresso and coffee at reasonable prices, they also have simple yet tasty bistro lunch, savoury hot snacks and pasta, as well as freshly prepared salads, desserts, pastry and cakes on offer.

Shopping in Italy: Turin

For me, there is no other better place in Italy to squander money than in Turin. This city is meant for serious shopping. From international luxury boutiques (e.g. Hermes) to independent small retailers to family-owned leather shops, Turin offers excellent shopping opportunities for those who know what they want.

This being one of the most important cities in Italy, needless to say all the major players in Italy's fashion industry are present. On Piazza San Carlo and the adjacent Via Roma, as well as Via Giuseppe Luigi Lagrange parallel to Piazza San Carlo, one can find international boutiques and prestigeous names such as Hermes, Max Mara, Ferragamo, Mont Blanc, Louis Vuitton, Armani, Gucci, Prada, Chanel, Dior, etc., as well as many other Italian brands. The advantage of shopping in Turin is, being somewhat off-the-beaten-tourist-track, you can look around the shops at your own pace, nobody will try to hassel you, coerce you into buying something, or attempt some aggressive selling tactics on you. And you don't have to push you way around the boutiques amid masses of package-tour tourists from the US and Asia, nor fight your way through the shopfloors till you reach the cashiers. Unlike Florence or Venice, shops in Turin in general do not carry much tourist stuffs. Which is good as I am sick of seeing precious shop spaces in prime locations stocked up with cheap Made in China tourist souvenir and memorabilia. 

Turin: Heartland of Lavazza, Beautiful Cafes, and Slow Food Movement

Turin has been one of my favourite Italian cities, alongside Trieste. These two cities are with any doubt the coffee capitals of Italy. There are plenty of splendid coffee houses in Turin, and the city is proud of its culinary traditions.

Indeed, the capital of Piedmont and the former capital of the Kingdom of Savoy has lots of offer in terms of food and wine. The region of Piedmont is well known for many culinary products and alcoholic drinks, including the world famous Barbera d'Asti red wines, vermouth (essential ingredient for martini and a wide range of other cocktails), as well as white truffles. Although Italy do not grow its own coffee, Turin is the hometown of Lavazza, the Italian coffee giant which is a major player in the global speciality coffee market. And a city that takes its coffee seriously, their food cannot be too far off the mark either.