Nebbia — Restaurant in Milan

I visit Milan twice a year for work and every time I planned all my restaurants ahead. Nebbia is one of those that’ve been on my radar for long and finally I’ve come around to visit. Unfortunately the experience was ruined by their service.

In conclusion, Upscale/uptight environment Up to standard service. Inhospitable and unwelcoming staff. Good flavourful food. Won’t come back.

Environment: First impression of the restaurant is that it’s very “cold”. With the white ceiling and white walls under the fluorescent lights, they’re probably going for a futuristic and modernist atmosphere but it really is more like dining in a hospital canteen or plane cabin.

Service & Staff: This will NOT be your typical welcoming Italian restaurant with sweet and warm workers.

My reservation was for one person only and I was seated at the bar next to the entrance and the register. Usually a bar seat doesn’t bother me but next to the entrance with people coming in and going out, plus that the bar stool was very unstable and extremely uncomfortable (set too low for the bar). After debating in my head for a minute I asked the staff if there’s a table that I could sit at. I could immediately see the discontent on his face but he did bring me to a table.

Throughout the dinner my table was attended by 3 different staffers and only one of them (tall guy with glasses) showed a bit of life in him and willingness to be there. The other two were completely lifeless and emotionless (short guy with moustache, tall bald guy with beard). For a restaurant set at this price point, this level of hospitality is unacdeptable. I can say service and staff wise, it’s the worst I’ve ever experienced in Milan.

Food: They first served some focaccia as snacks. They aren’t greasy at all which is rare. Nicely seasoned overall but could use a bit more herbs in my opinion.

I got “Ox heart, celeriac and arugula” as appetiser. It is beautifully presented. The ox heart and celeriac are sliced thinly to achieve an impressive texture that is crisp and almost crunchy. However, the sauce is very very savoury. Even accompanied by the arugula, the overall saltiness is very over-compromising. Bread that comes with was quite mediocre. The inside is on the drier side, it’s flour-heavy and powdery. Very subtle tanginess, quite bland. The bread is not pleasant at all to eat by itself but I suppose its flavour profile matches with the appetiser. One is bland, one is too salty.

For my main I had “Spaghetti, turnip tops, shrimps, mussels and bottarga”. Props to them that when the dish was served it was still very hot. Pasta was perfectly cooked and the aroma of mussels runs through the whole dish. Dried chilli pieces were a nice addition to the textures and flavours but since they’re dried and relatively big pieces, it’s not enjoyable to chew on. The green herbs really stood out here, beautiful fragrances. Although I once again have to say that this dish is quite salty, probably because of the bottarga. I did enjoy it, overall I can describe it as an earthy seafood pasta, with a bit too much...

A very pleasant dining experience in a minimalist and beautiful space. I’d recommend it to anyone in Milan looking for creative Italian food. Make sure to get the pan brioche duck liver mousse, it was quite possibly one of the best first bites I’ve ever had. It was heavenly. A generous serving of liver mousse is applied to a perfectly crispy slice of pan brioche, topped with sweet pickled onions. That’s it, and it’s the perfect trio. The mousse itself was fairly light, but the aftertaste of liver was distinct. The mango+papaya salad with veal head presented two very different worlds in the salad. The salad, using much riper mangos and papayas, is strategically flavored using savory flavors like dill and olive oil. The deep fried chunk veal head is a mix between leaner and fattier parts, without much seasoning. The uni spaghetti had a fairly faint and subtle uni flavor. They tried here, and yes you taste the uni in the sauce, but the result is underwhelming. The semifreddo is delicious. When the cream melts it has such a thick creamy consistency that I love. This is paired with crunchy caramelized nuts and an espresso foam, three classic flavors that always go well, in 3...

Always a secure choice for a mouthwatering fine-dining experience. Set into a modern Scandinavian style 3 rooms space, the 3 Owners running the show (2 in the kitchen, one serving) are young, bold and ready to offer the best they have every month. I dine here at least once per year and it might be my favourite place in town so far. Of course you've got to consider that the cuisine is quite unusual, with quite a lot of dishes made out of poor cuts such as leavers, brains or spines. However mains such as grandma's style meatballs, napolitan's genovese pasta, milanese risottos or bologna's chicken schnitzel will make you tour Italy in just one meal. The wine selection is quite fresh too, ranging from France all the way down to the south of Italy, but the waiters will be able to tickle your imagination towards the best pairing possible. Quite unusual then, yes, pricey too, yes, but quality is not a compromise: quality is just the rule here. P.S. "Nebbia" in italian means "Fog", but the place has nothing to do with it 😉 and meals change at least once per season, so you have at least 4 reasons every year...