Del Cambio

Piazza Carignano, 2

10123 Turin

Italy

Tel. +39 011546690

The dishes

Piedmontese Salad: Selection of Seasonal Vegetables in Various Preparations (Insalata Piemontese)

Piedmontese Stuffed Pasta with Shellfish, Pink Shrimp, Lemon and Basil (Plin di Crostacei)

Veal Tongue, persillade, Vinegar-marinated Lardo, Consommé Gelée and Parsley (Lingua alla Persillade)

Rabbit Pie with Peppers and Mixed Greens (Torta di Coniglio)

Cheese Selection (Selezione di Formaggi)

Del Cambio is a remarkably beautiful restaurant located in the heart of Turin’s downtown. Situated across from Palazzo Carignano, the first Parliament of the unified Italy, Del Cambio has in fact been a Turin institution for centuries, founded 1757 and a favourite dining spot of politicians, nobles and the famous set (Mozart, Audrey Hepburn, Nietzsche, and Maria Callas all ate here: Cavour, Italy’s first ever Prime Minister, liked a specific rice dish, later known as Riso alla Cavour). Congratulations are in order here to the De Negri family, who reopened the restaurant in 2014, after a dark period in which it was risking destruction, and who brought it back to its ancient splendour. Francesco Rovai and Diego Giglio (who took over cooking duties in April 2025 after acting for many years as sous-chef to Matteo Baronetto, a student of Gualtiero Marchesi who earned Del Cambio’s Michelin star) man the stoves from a creative and organizational perspective. Giglio’s arrival has brought Del Cambio back to its origins, that is to a more traditional and authentic Piedmontese cuisine that is less inventive and creative than Baronetto’s, but ultimately more satisfying. (For example, I never had as good a dish at Del Cambio as the Rabbit Pie I had this time.) Many of the dishes find their inspiration in the historic recipes and cookbooks of days gone by, such as Il Cuoco Piemontese Perfezionato a Parigi (this was, is, one of Itay’s most famous cookbooks of all time, especially popular in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries: first published in Italy in 1766, it drew its inspirations strongly from Joseph Menon’s 1746 book La Cuisineière Bourgeoise). The wine cellar is actually older than the restaurant itself, as documents show a Cantina Del Cambio was active already in the seventeenth century: today the cellar boasts over 16,000 bottles and 4,000 labels for patrons to choose from. Even better, and differently from most other much-touted and starred restaurants, there are quite a few older vintages to choose from, so well done Del Cambio! Last but not least, the interior design is gorgeous, especially the sala Risorgimento, which is about as grand a dining room as you’ll come across anywhere in the world. For the more modernist-inclined the second dining space, called the sala Pistoletto after the famous Italian artist of same name, is less formal and holds a number of modern artworks, first and foremost the Evento series of reflecting mirror-like surfaces designed by Pistoletto himself. Other artwork by Patkin, Gamper, Bronstein, Herrera and Rama only add to the sensory experience of dining at Del Cambio. Myself, I like the more classic look and feel of the first dining room, but I can see why some would be left enthusiastic by the more modern-looking room.