If we have returned to enjoying trattorias, we owe it to Diego Rossi, who with his Trippa has rekindled the pleasure of taste first in Milan and then across Italy. Discover what to eat at Trippa nearly 10 years later.
Diego Rossi reminds me of Cubism. The Cubists maintained the concept of perspectiva naturalis from the late 19th-century avant-garde but multiplied the viewpoints, completely altering the chronological succession of events and moments. Diego Rossi has done something similar with his food, influencing the Milanese dining scene first and then all of Italy.
With Trippa, Diego Rossi brought back the pleasure of good food to Milan, a place where you can sit at a table and be overwhelmed by unpretentious, straightforward flavors. Nearly ten years ago, Trippa opened its doors to a Milan somewhat faded gastronomically.
Sushi smothered in sauces was all the rage, Adrià's molecular cuisine still had a visible trail, trattorias were dusty after previous decades' idyll, and the top-tier restaurants were inaccessible to many for various reasons. Rossi opened his trattoria, a bit trendy but still a trattoria with paper placemats and wooden tables. His menu features tripe, offal, and liver—"partly out of economic necessity," he confides in a phone call.
The result? We all know it. Someone said that booking a table at Bottura's Osteria Francescana is easier than getting a reservation at Trippa. It's a joke, but not far from the truth. Diego Rossi, whether you like it or not, is a pioneer. He has brought back forgotten ingredients to restaurants, giving them new dignity.
I remember the faces of friends and colleagues when I said I had tripe cooking. I remember them so well that for a while, I was almost ashamed to eat "that stuff," as they called it. But it wasn't my fault that what was an elegant madeleine for Proust was tripe in stew for me. After all, we are a nation of coasts, but we also have a strong and long-standing rural tradition.
Some called him crazy, saying tripe and offal couldn't work, it was too big a risk. Yet it worked. It worked so well that those less noble parts, costing a few pennies, now fetch exorbitant prices. You don't need an economics degree to understand how this "game" works. Today, Diego Rossi is still a reference point in Italian gastronomy. His dishes have evolved but have maintained that sincerity that is the only thing that gives value to a properly made dish.
Rossi's focus has shifted to a more conscious approach to meat, and vegetables are increasingly present. The team works very well, there is friendliness in the dining room, but above all, competence and care. Some create art, and some identify with the same movement, which doesn't mean copying but drawing inspiration. Chef Rossi (though he doesn't like to be identified as such, as his t-shirts tell us) is part of the first group, and he does it very naturally and, it must be said, quite well. But what and how do they eat at Trippa today?
Dining at Trippa Nearly Ten Years Later
The place hasn't changed; there are new details dictated by time that inevitably creates memories, but it has remained the same in its essence. A quick look around the dining room reveals that almost all the diners are not here for the first time. It might seem like irrelevant information, but since people always return to places where they had a good time (quote), it's quite indicative (and perhaps also an explanation for the perennial booking issue).
The menu is divided into two columns: before and after. Nothing prevents you from ordering multiple dishes from the same column, and this is a freedom we needed. Fried tripe and tripe stew of the day are always present as calling cards. The veal tripe stew is consistent and perfectly chewy, symbolizing impeccable cooking. Besides the tomato, there's a Parmesan cream that adds an elegant touch to such a rustic and simple dish.
The menu features fried snails with garlic purée, rabbit salad, red wine-roasted chicken, ricotta and mortadella flan, but also vegetarian dishes like fava bean purée with dandelion and chili or stewed fava beans with pimento, vinegar crostini, and goat cacioricotta. One of Trippa Milano's strengths is that the offerings change very often.
The specials of the day were steamed asparagus with hazelnut butter and Piedmont hazelnuts, a vegetarian dish characterized by perfect balance, and lampredotto. The latter is a dish that goes straight to the point, with great character, though harmonized by the skillful use of herbs and spices.
The tiramisu is always good, but the panna cotta with grape must is the star of the dessert menu, with a creamy and enveloping texture, a sweet flavor tempered by the bitter notes of the must, and a satisfaction worthy of the best desserts.
Trippa's Butter and Parmesan Tagliatelle
The butter and Parmesan tagliatelle at Trippa deserve a special mention. It’s undeniably trendy to offer buttered pasta at restaurants, and I’ve often heard people say, "I can make buttered pasta at home." Sure, nothing prevents you from trying one of the most basic, simple, banal, and tricky pasta dishes. We all more or less grew up with buttered pasta; it’s good, comforting, and never tires. But the truth is that making good buttered pasta requires experience and knowledge.
The balance of this first course is constantly under threat from too much butter, the pasta's consistency, the dish's hydration determining its creaminess, and the Parmesan that can curdle. Diego Rossi's butter and Parmesan tagliatelle is something everyone should try at least once in their life. It starts with fresh pasta made every evening before service. The classic recipe uses one egg for every 100 grams of flour, with an additional component of egg yolks. The secret is chicken broth, which gives the dish an umami note that enhances all the other ingredients, creating a continuous sensation of pleasure on the palate.
The broth, made with only water and chicken, is cooked indefinitely, then reduced and cooled until the collagen creates a sort of gelatin. A portion of tagliatelle includes 90 grams of pasta and 90 grams of butter plus 30 grams of 24-month-aged Parmesan, which is blended, not just grated. This is an important step that prevents the cheese from curdling but allows it to meld into the dish's creaminess. Butter and 30 grams of chicken gelatin are heated in a pan, the same pan that will host the tagliatelle once cooked. The pasta is tossed quickly and vigorously, and the Parmesan is added off the heat. This is an exceptional dish that you could eat endlessly, and it’s no coincidence that many guests order two portions in the same meal.
The Impossible Reservations at Trippa
Everything is great at Trippa, but what about the impossible reservations? I personally asked Diego Rossi this question, and when I provocatively said, "You do it for hype," he couldn’t help but laugh. "It's in my interest to fill the place every night; no one has priority, and there are no favoritism. Sure, I keep a couple of spots for emergencies, but the rest of the dining room is available to customers. We set up a monthly booking system, and the spots were gone in minutes. We tried opening bookings quarterly, and the same thing happened.
We have customers from all over Italy and abroad. I’m very sorry about this issue, but I can’t deny that I’m happy for the good of the place and the team working here," says Rossi. He adds that the No Show issue, where many customers book and don’t show up without notifying, is not to be underestimated. It's a problem for restaurants and restaurateurs who suffer significant economic losses due to this phenomenon.
Contact Information
Trippa Milano
Address: Via Giorgio Vasari 1, 20125 Milan, Italy
Hours: Monday to Saturday - 19:15 - 23:30
Reservations: +39 327 6687908
Email: info@trippamilano.it
Website: Trippa Milano
