A Period Film of Art, Love and Good Food: A Trip to Melzo

Today visiting Melzo almost always coincides with experiencing the emotion of a good film, since one of the city's major attractions is the Arcadia multiplex cinema, designed by Giancarlo Marzorati, who created an architectural colossus compared more than once to a modern cathedral, a structure that for the first time in Italy introduced the concept of the multiplex. But you just need to take a stroll around the city, already mentioned by the Roman writer Pliny the Elder, to realise that its history is like a film too, at times action-packed, at times romantic.

While the wars that in the 1400s made Melzo a strategic zone for the fighting between the Visconti-Sforza Duchy and the Serenissima could today be imagined as a blockbuster, the story of Agnese Pasta, a legendary heroine who led a pro-Sforza women's revolt against the Venetian soldiers, protesting against poverty and violence, could become a drama film. In the billboard of Melzo's history there's room for romance too: in 1474 the beautiful noblewoman Lucia Marliani, married, became the lover of Duke Galeazzo Maria Sforza, by whom the following year she had a son. That same year the duke granted her the fiefdom of Melzo and Gorgonzola with their respective castles as well as many precious jewels. The love story, however, had a dramatic ending when, in 1476, Galeazzo Maria Sforza died stabbed.

During the government of his successor, Ludovico il Moro, the woman lost the riches and properties donated to her by the deceased duke. After the fall of Ludovico il Moro at the hands of the French in 1499, the marquisate of Melzo, governed by Gian Giacomo Trivulzio, a condottiero of Louis XII, experienced a long period of social and economic stability. One of the monuments we visit is in fact the direct witness of that period of splendour, in which the family spared no resources to embellish its residences: Palazzo Trivulzio, of medieval layout, originally conceived as a castle. Of the ancient structure, the mighty tower survives today, as well as the elegant porticoes of the courtyard.

During our walk in Melzo we visit the parish church of Saints Alessandro and Margherita, with its evocative 15th-century Lombard forms, but also the Civic Tower, once the bell tower of the church of Sant'Ambrogio. At the church of Sant'Andrea, born around the year 1000 as a private chapel, we admire a precious cycle of frescoes, brought to light after recent restorations, during which a skull was also found that could even be that of Galeazzo Maria Sforza. Among the precious works of art, some frescoes of the Leonardesque school also stand out. After this lovely tour, our day continues among the fairy-tale atmosphere of the Ristorante Pizzeria Il Gatto e la Volpe, on via XXIV Maggio, near the Arcadia cinema.

We settle at the tables of the large dining room and, among the amusing frescoes, we start studying the menu, exchanging a few words with Mr Gino, who has run the place since 1993 with the help of his brother Damiano and together with his partner Mary, the cook Yuri, the pizza chef Fabio and the waitress Patti. "I'd started out as a waiter working at this very place, which was founded in the 1980s. When I took it over, I renovated everything. Today the two dining rooms, equipped with a wood-fired oven, are also suitable for parties and ceremonies. The pizzas are one of our strong points, along with the quality and freshness of the products: we prepare everything on the spot", the owner tells us. We start with sliced cured meats, while our friends with a seafaring soul enjoy a lovely mixed seafood starter.

Part of our group, kids included, can't resist the pizzas, and we thus discover that the place won the award for Best Pizza of the Martesana at a recent competition. Three different doughs are available: besides the normal one, there's also the green pasta made with spinach and the wholemeal one, much appreciated by those watching their figure. Our choice falls on the fairy-tale themed pizzas such as the "Fata Turchina", with buffalo mozzarella, fresh cherry tomatoes, oil and oregano, the "Gatto e la Volpe" pizza and the "Pinocchio". Among the restaurant's specialities, the vodka penne with speck, cherry tomatoes, red Tropea onion, tomato and cream are a big hit, but the orecchiette with turnip tops also win fans. The seafood carbonara, made with a slice of swordfish and bottarga, is also very popular.

We wash down these goodies with trendy wines from the various Italian regions, and continue with a lovely mixed grilled meat, while the friends who prefer fish opt for sea bass and sea bream grilled or oven-baked. Finally, the film of our day in Melzo reserves us an exquisite and sweet happy ending thanks to the homemade desserts, including the tiramisù and the almond, chocolate and ricotta cake: you'd really want to hit replay.

Francesca Bertha

FOR INFORMATION:

Ristorante Pizzeria Il Gatto e la Volpe Via XXIV Maggio, 6 Melzo (MI) Tel.: 02/9550671