Outdoor Dining in Milan: Al Mercante in the Historic Cinque Vie
Looking for outdoor dining in Milan away from scooters and tourist crowds? Al Mercante sits on Piazza Pio XI, a quiet pedestrian square in the Cinque Vie. This is Milan’s oldest neighbourhood. Our terrace faces the seventeenth-century façade of the Pinacoteca Ambrosiana. You’ll find us five minutes on foot from the Duomo and ten from the Teatro alla Scala. Few spots in central Milan let you eat in a real historic piazza rather than on a busy pavement.
Car-free outdoor dining in Milan, in a real Renaissance square
Most visitors quickly notice the same problem. Milan has plenty of restaurants with a few tables on the street. Very few offer genuine car-free outdoor dining in Milan’s historic centre. Our terrace is different. Piazza Pio XI is fully pedestrian no traffic, no horns, no delivery vans near your wine glass. You sit between palazzi from the 1600s. The light shifts from golden aperitivo hour into the blue Milanese evening. The only soundtrack is conversation and the occasional church bell.
This is one of the most photographed corners of the city. It’s also one of the rare pedestrian street restaurants in Milan where the view from your table matches the Italy you came to see.
Al fresco dining in historic Milan: a Bottega Storica since 2010
The City of Milan named Al Mercante a Bottega Storica (Historic Shop of Milan) in 2010. The honour goes only to venues that have shaped the city’s character over decades. For travellers, this is a simple promise: al fresco dining in historic Milan, in a place locals consider part of their heritage. Architect Nicola Gallizia designed the interiors. The Romanini family Claudio and Simona run the kitchen and the dining room. You’ll feel the attention of a true family-owned restaurant.
What to eat: Milanese classics and Italian favourites
Our menu celebrates the great dishes of Milan and northern Italy. Try the saffron risotto with slow-cooked ossobuco, the tall golden Milanese cutlet, hand-rolled pumpkin tortelli, or Piedmontese beef tartare. You’ll also find fresh fish and seasonal vegetarian plates. Our wine list holds more than 300 labels from Lombardy, Piedmont, Tuscany and France. Ask the sommelier half the fun is being guided.
Quiet outdoor dining in Milan city centre, before or after the opera
The Cinque Vie is a lovely pocket of Milan. You’re three minutes from the Duomo, but it feels worlds away from the crowds. That makes us a natural choice for quiet outdoor dining in Milan city center, especially before an evening at the Teatro alla Scala. The walk takes ten minutes through Via Mercanti and Piazza del Duomo. We open early enough for a relaxed pre-theatre dinner. Afterwards, we stay open for a glass of wine and a dessert under the lights of the piazza.
Business travellers find us five minutes from Piazza Affari and the legal district. The Financial Times has recommended us for business lunch in Milan.
Plan your evening at Al Mercante
Tables on the terrace are limited. They book up quickly from May to September. If you’d like to dine outside, please reserve in advance. Let us know you want the dehors we’ll do our best to seat you in the piazza.
Al Mercante Via Cesare Cantù 7 / Piazza Pio XI, Milan. The Cinque Vie, where outdoor dining in Milan still feels like a discovery.
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