Milan- First night in Italy- Memorable restaurant request?

I too love the travel planning and finding restaurants for memorable meals. But, a memorable meal on arrival day for me is not a great restaurant necessarily, but a great place for people watching and experiencing the local area.
We had a memorable dinner in the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele I shopping arcade at restaurant we stumbled upon after a 12-hour flight delay in Chicago, then rushing to La Scala upon arrival in Milan where I promptly fell asleep during the second act. Sitting under the glass and iron roof, drinking wine and eating pizza at midnight felt like the perfect start to a great trip.

I really hate recommending restaurants because as soon as I do, people say it was bad because they got a poor server, etc.
Having said that, the food in this restaurant was very good. https://www.ristorantegalleria.it/it/ristorante It is not a touristy restaurant even though it is located in the Galleria. Quality Milanese dishes.

When I travel I search Yelp, Trip Advisor and Lonely Planet. If the same restaurant makes at least two lists with decent reviews, I choose that one.

@nancy oh that sounds like a perfect first day! My husband had to hold me back scheduling a La Scala moment because he doesn’t like to get dressed to the nines ( I will my next solo trip!) 😊

@threadwear I love your tip! Thank you so much- just the perfect advice I’m looking here for! Thank you! thanks for the recommend. Promise I won’t complain about anything if I take your advice!

does anyone have a “special” Milan restaurant they can recommend?

Trippa in Via Vasari. Even if now its listed on the Michelin, this is not a place for tourists. How "local" are you going to go?

You need to book, better at 9 pm to have the table for the all night.

Great crew in the kitchen, a bunch of taciturn maniacs from the old Milanese school. They work in a total silence, some could actually be mute. Or on the run, you never know.

When we were in Milan in 2017, after our Village Italy tour, we enjoyed dinner at Bottega Ghiotta, Corso Sempione 5. We just wandered by and tried it, and enjoyed the food, the setting, and our server so much that we made reservations to have dinner there again, on our last night in Milan. The first night I had risotto alla pescatora, and stan had salmon with asparagus. There's a big star in the margin of my notes, which means we really liked it. On our return visit, Stan had Cotoletta Milanese, which was probably a breaded veal cutlet, while I had grigliata di mare, grilled octopus, squid, and shrimp. I noted the octopus was the best I had ever had. Both nights we enjoyed a bottle of white wine, followed by coffee, and a dessert for Stan.

We would gladly return. Was it "special?" Maybe not, but it was memorable and noteworthy.

Enjoy Milan; we had a wonderful 5 days there.

@dario
@jane
Thank you!

Even though I am not troubled by jet lag, no way would I schedule a late night concert on the first night. Absolutely I would be sleeping within 10 min

@Paul-of-the-frozen-north
My husband agrees with you!
And I’m afraid I do too, now.. when I was younger I would fight to keep my eyes open as late as possible. Sometimes it’s hard to resist the call of seeing everything you can while you are there..
I think experience and the necessity of taking care of health now circumvent the crazy thought that you have to experience as much as possible while you are in this particular place on the planet that you have been looking forward to seeing for so long!
So yeah- a big thumbs up to your comment! Especially for a tour- I’ve never done one- looking forward to the fast pace- but agree- gotta get those ZZZ’s in to promote stamina, focus and just clear state of mind. Even tho you don’t experience it, for me…Jet lag is such a real thing!

@dario
Thanks for the tip! It sounds amazing. I’m
Proud to be a member of the folks agreeing to honor the entire animal mindset. I have a host of meals I have partaken in that reflect that. I guess my most memorable is the “Rocky Mountain oysters” I have partaken in quite by accident. Those poor sheep and bulls testicles I munched down happily while my coworkers watched with baited breath on the verge of hysteria. Guess a little local beer helps! They honestly… tasted like very CHEWY chicken… 🤣
@Dario thank you but I fear my travel partners won’t be so adventurous. But I love your suggestion! Any other Milan suggestions welcome, everyone.

Thanks- Lisa

@jane
Honestly- this is exactly what I’m looking for. Thank you so much for responding.
Thanks to you and the other posters here.
If anyone else wants to add their $0.02 I’m open for more suggestions