Ristorante Joia is quite simply my favorite restaurant in Milan for many reasons: the delicious food of course, the calming, quiet atmosphere of the restaurant, the values that underpin the decisions made by Joia’s visionary chef/owner Pietro Leemann and the reasonable prices (especially for a Michelin-starred restaurant).

Joia’s lunch menu has many seasonal and beautiful options but I invariably choose the Piatto Quadro (“Square Meal”), an ingenious invention where lunch diners have the pleasure of trying five of the chef’s newest recipe creations presented on a single square plate. Since the price is so reasonable for such an exceptional place it’s easy to go back again (and again!).

Pietro Leemann‘s serious vision for eating well plays out in the use of super-fresh, flavourful ingredients and the satisfying texture and consistency found in each dish. Going to his restaurant means trying whatever is in season in that moment, presented in a creative, attractive yet simple manner. The flavour pairings are occasionally unexpected but always harmonious, and I have never tasted an unsuccessful combination. Pietro enjoys using Lombardy’s local cheeses as well as seeds and other pleasing ingredients that go crunch when you put them in your mouth. It will be an unprecedented flavor experience who will probably leave you satisfied. 

Going to Joia for lunch is one of the pleasures of living in Milan.  The recommendation of a vegetarian restaurant in Milan may be surprising, coming from a carnivore born in Kansas.  Pay Joia a visit, and you will see why. The restaurant is right in the beating heart of Milan’s eclectic district of Porta Nuova, near the Giardini Pubblici, and can be easily reached with the underground.