Antica Osteria di Ronchettino is truly ancient. This 17-century farmstead at the edge of Milan’s Gratosoglio neighborhood is said to be a former staging post where even Napoleon stayed overnight. Throughout Milan’s history, it has been a bakery, a butcher shop, and a trattoria. At the beginning of the 1990s, it was a café and sandwich shop, then the locale was taken over by the Angelillo family, becoming a theater for cabaret shows in the golden years of Milan’s comedy scene. Twenty years ago, it changed direction once again with Il Ronchettino, a typical Milanese tavern serving home-style cooking, including mondeghili (Milanese meatballs), cassoeula (a pork and cabbage stew), Milanese tripe, risotto and, of course, Milan’s famous cotoletta. Antica Osteria di Ronchettino is warm and inviting, with several dining rooms that are usually packed. The food has always been delicious here, but in recent years it has become even better. Rather than rest on their laurels and hire any old cook, Patrizia and her children Alessia and Francesco have chosen a chef with experience in Michelin-starred kitchens.
A real chef is needed to preserve traditions
“If we want everything to stay the way it is, everything needs to change.” The tradition is still there, but only outwardly seems to have never changed. Everything is strictly homemade, the ingredients are chosen with care and consistency, and the cooking techniques are conducted by sure hands. Milan’s selection of so-called ‘traditional’ trattorias is dominated by former dishwashers turned cheap cooks and historic locales offering second-rate ingredients in picturesque rooms. The Milanese paradox is that eating a good cutlet and a good risotto is almost impossible. The cutlets are cooked in a fryer, and not with clarified butter, and the risotto is toasted and precooked, just waiting to be ordered. That’s fine; not many people notice and most prefer to pay less rather than eat better. Having a renowned chef cook such simple, traditional dishes seems absurd, but it’s not. At Ronchettino, they’ve gone against the grain, which has proven successful (the 110-seat dining room is always full for lunch and dinner, for example) – and the quality is indisputable. Chef Federico Sisti has not shaken up the menu, introduced mini portions that will leave you hungry, or creative but useless dishes. He executes traditional recipes perfectly for the finest results, and this doesn’t always mean using methods from the past.
The menu: almost like the olden days
Warm veal “nervetti” salad with borlotti beans and red onion (€12), Milanese-style meatballs (€14), risotto alla milanese with roasted marrow (€15), and dessert for €8, including the house specialty: the “Pastrocchio” di Ronchettino, a chocolate Bavarian cream with amaretti, peach purée and chantilly cream. Iconic dishes feature alongside off-menu specials crafted with fresh products chosen based on seasonality and intuition. Like the thick version of the classic veal cutlet.
Fry like a real Milanese
In Milan, nothing is fried in oil, period. Clarified butter is the medium of choice, and it is done in a pan, slowly. Here at Ronchettino, the fried food is a triumph. Start with the mix of fried sweetbread, brains and mondeghili (Milanese-style meatballs) and continue with the cotoletta, offered in three versions: the orecchia d’elefante (or “elephant ear”) veal cutlet (€28), the thick cutlet with Milanese-style sweetbreads and mashed potatoes (€24), or the “Imperiale,” a colossus made for 4 people, weighing in at about 4 and a half pounds, and portioned right at the table (€60). Skeptical? Try the mondeghili: these typical Milanese-style meatballs are fried in clarified butter and smaller than the traditional variety, but are much softer, creamier, and juicer. While proclaiming Il Ronchettino’s veal cutlets as “the best” might start a war, there’s no doubt about their mondeghili: they’re the absolute best, hands down.
Photos by Fusillo Lab