TORINO
CITY AND FOOD

Arrived to Europe from America, chocolate was used at the beginning especially in Spain as a spicy and bitter drink. Later it started being prepared with sugar and vanilla, the production of the first tablets began and it became very popular in the noble and ecclesiastical environment. But it was only after its arrival in Italy at the beginning of the seventeenth century, that the use of chocolate as dessert was developed, creating countless new recipes. Turin became the largest production center of the country, together with Venice and Florence, and one of the bests in Europe. Here, in the late eighteenth century, Doret created the first chocolate candy as we know it today. New recipes were developed and traveled throughout Europe, such as the one called "gianduja" after the name of the most famous Piedmontese folk character. Since then chocolate has become one of the main typical products of Turin and Piedmont, within a tradition that is still evident in cafes, bakeries and manufacturing centers of the city and its surroundings. Gobino Guido, one of Turin's major chocolate producers, and Marité Costa, owner of the historic cafe Al Bicerin, bring us in this interview through the history of chocolate from its arrival in the city until today, explaining how it has influenced local traditions and still forms part of Turin's economy and culture.