HOME > Chowhound > Italy >


What goodies do you like to cart home from Milan

  • 9


I'll be visiting Milan for the first time and was wondering what food items do you like to bring back home? Any particular must visit store to stock these up on? I've heard friends mention some items eg. cheese, limoncello etc they like to bring back from other Italian cities. Appreciate any tips I can get, thanks

  1. Click to Upload a photo (10 MB limit)
  1. I've never been La Fungheria, but I would like to go the next time I am in Milan. Dried mushrooms are really an ideal food to bring home from northern Italy. They also sell saffron.

    La Fungheria
    Viale Abruzzi, 93
    20131 Milano - Italy
    Tel. +39 02 29526034


    I like the local Milanese salame, but if you are headed back to the US, I don't know if you can get it through customs. If you can, this salumeria sells their own salame (but I don't know if they can vacuum pack it for you; ask your hotel to call ahead if you don't speak Italian) and it also sells pan-Italian cheeses and regional specialties like lentils from Umbria, rice from Vercelli, speck from Sauris (fabulous), etc.


    There are probably some Milanese digestivi that aren't sold in the US (Stravecchio Branca? BrancaMenta? ). You might try sampling some at restaurants and bars to see if you like any. You can buy whatever you like in a supermarket, or you might even find them at the airport duty free.

    1. I like to go to Peck and get some olive oil from Garda.
      Most things are super expensive there but the selection and display can't be beat.

      1 Reply
      1. what will be the equivalent/similar supermarkets there to target, monoprix, carrefour etc ? I'm also hoping to pick up some liqueurs and chocolate, does anyone have particular favourites?

        barberinibee - great idea about the mushrooms, they are indeed perfect for transporting home =) Thanks for the other suggestions too

        Jangita - Peck sounds like a good place to check out even if just to browse around, thanks

        4 Replies
        1. re: xblueberries

          You might find this list of chocolate-makers helpful.


          If you are going to Peck, there is a very old candy shop quite close by on via Victor Hugo called Giovanni Galli that sells all the classic big brand Italian gift chocolates and bars from Perugia and Torino, and Majani from Bologna, plus they make some hand-dipped chocolates of their own:


          I don't know if there is much difference between supermarkets or which have colonized Milan (Co-op? Di per Di? Carrefour). I'd just ask your hotel for the nearest. You should be able to tell pretty quickly if it has liqueurs that interest you or that you can't readily get in your home country. For oddball non-local specialties, like a small-batch limoncello, you will probably need to go to fancy enoteche, or pay Peck's gasp-worthy prices. If you do a google search for "liquori milano" you'll get a bunch of choices beyond Peck.

          1. re: barberinibee

            I actually dont recommend Peck for much of anything. They have a lovely liquor area but rather than selling esoteric italian liquors it is more focussed on an upscale and often foreign (i.e scotch and french wines) selection for the Milan carriage trade.

            their grocery and fancy food products tend to be private label and very expensive. And the whole shopping area nearby, which even five years ago had quite a number of food stores, appeared to us last year as being more focussed on tourists, with one gelato shop after the other.

            That being said, you could do worse than buy a cut of parmigiiano reggiano at Peck

            I like shopping in the local markets, where you can usually find dried porcini, olive oils, honey and cheeses at a lower price point than Peck. Here is one.
            We enjoyed the Mercato San Marco, in the Brera district
            note, these are open on different weekdays

            1. re: jen kalb

              jen kalb -- yeah, read some comments here about Peck being expensive and more scaled towards foreign stuff. I would probably only drop by for a browse if I have time.

              Thanks for the links for the market, just what I need =) I Iove visiting local markets while overseas. I hope I can find some local grocery shops too for pasta/ unique local foodstuff

              1. re: xblueberries

                good luck - looking forward to a report back!

        2. I brought back salt, as is my custom, to bring salt and other spices, from places to which I travel. Dried mushrooms are an awesome idea -- they are super light and easy to pack. Not food, but the best buy I had in Milan was a pair of leather gloves :)