[Oct. 2025] My husband told me he’d made a reservation at a restaurant inside the monastery, so I was very curious to see what kind of simple food I’d be served.
The Torba Monastery is located near the town of Gornate Olona in the Lombardy region of northern Italy.
What’s more, this monastery is a UNESCO World Heritage Site!
I simply had to go and see it.
It was a beautiful, clear autumn Sunday.
First, we paid the entrance fee of €8 per person to enter the monastery.
However, this fee only applies if you plan to tour the buildings on the premises; it’s not necessary if you just go straight to the restaurant and leave.
And so, we went into the restaurant.
It’s true that this is the dining hall where the nuns ate, but it’s now a fully modern restaurant, and they don’t serve the food the nuns ate.
I was both disappointed and relieved…
Apparently, they offer a weekly rotation of dishes made with seasonal ingredients.
For starter, we shared a creamy cheese called Zincarlin with chestnuts scattered throughout.
This cheese is apparently from this region near Varese, and the flavour itself is mild.
It’s meant to be eaten with pumpkin and red cabbage, and the colourful presentation was lovely.
For the main course, I chose Arrosto di lonza alle castagne.
It was roast pork and polenta, and it was delicious, but the sauce gradually became heavy for me.
Judging from the title, I think it contained chestnuts.
My husband ordered a sausage stew called Salsiccia in umido con verze.
It was a stew dotted with small sausages, and he said it had a mild flavour.
For dessert, we had Rotolo con crema chantilly al melograno, a rare roll cake with pomegranate.
It was light and delicious.
This, along with a half-litre of house wine and coffee, came to a total of €70.
They had a very unique menu, so I thought it might be worth visiting again in a different season.
After dinner, we toured the ruins of a monastery, which is said to have been in operation from the 8th to the 15th centuries.
Honestly, it’s so unassuming I’m amazed it’s been designated a World Heritage Site.
All we saw were the remains of a church and part of the building where the nuns lived.
However, the monastery was apparently significant because it was part of the city walls of a now-defunct town.
It’s managed by the FAI, an Italian organization for the protection of historical heritage, similar to the UK’s National Trust.
