Via Fiori Chiari, in the central and iconic Brera district of Milan, is packed with venues and restaurants, almost all tied to current trends. An elegant street full of life, sounds, and the chatter of young and old alike, inseparably linked—like most of the dining options—to a thoroughly contemporary lifestyle. But here you’ll also find Nabucco, for nearly fifty years a landmark of Milanese dining and for its special connection to the nearby Teatro alla Scala.

It all began in the 70s, when the venue was called il Soldato d’Italia, until it changed its name and was rechristened Nabucco, a tribute to Giuseppe Verdi, at the wish of La Scala tenor Zingrilli; it then became a destination for artists, musicians, and lovers of opera and classical music. In truth, recent years were not easy; the location, partly due to a renovation that had stripped away its soul, had offered a gourmet cuisine not in keeping with the Milanese character of the neighborhood.