Latteria Bera

This shop is a minor rarity for the centre of Turin: hidden away behind Piazza Castello, it’s a dairy with a long history, as you can tell from the vintage sign hanging outside. Here the art of fine dairying is now kept alive by Chiara, the granddaughter of Romola, who originally took over the shop in 1958. with her sisters, Marta and Bruna. This all-female team transformed the small place into a reference point, then as now. Grandma Romola used to tell how “In the old days we used to sell more than 600 litres of milk a day” – not only to private customers but also the bars and restaurants that used to stock up here. Today Chiara selects about 70 cheeses – tomas, Gorgonzolas, three different Parmigiano Reggianos, fresh and mature cheeses and pecorinos – and also sells a small selection of artisan charcuterie, old-fashioned bread (on Tuesday from Susa, on Wednesday from Altopascio in Tuscany, on Thursday from Altamura in Puglia and Matera in Basilicata) and groceries that give the place the air of a food emporium from the past.

***