A few years back I took a trip to Bolzano with a family party. Bolzano is mostly Italian, but has a German-speaking minority (about one quarter of the population has German as a first language). Fortunately for the out-of-town visitor, it is quite easy to get along in English, and even easier if you know a smattering of Italian and/or German. (Restaurants often offer menus in both Italian and German, which makes it easier for the English speakers to decode them, having two sets of clues.) Bolzano’s really at the crossroads of Italian and Austrian cultures, with bilingual signs and a walkable city center where it’s easy to find beautiful churches, lots of shopping, and appealing restaurants.

We had an excellent meal under a tent at the Laurin Restaurant at the Parkhotel Laurin, where they were good enough to accommodate us with a lovely tasting menu dinner for 13 on rather short notice. We didn’t stay there, but it’s a grand old hotel (dating from 1910). The hotel grounds were gorgeous, too, with a rose garden, a heated pool, and art everywhere. I particularly enjoyed having a drink at their outdoor bar—I absolutely had to order the Americano molto sbagliato (because I have been known to be the very wrong American on more than one occasion) and to my pleasant surprise, it was actually pretty tasty.

How do you make “The Very Wrong American” right?

Fill a glass with port, Aperol, club soda and ice. 

ADDRESS

Bolzano, South Tyrol, Italy, Via Laurin 4

CONTACT

Official Site

info@laurin.it

ph: +39 0471 311 000

LEAD-IN IMAGE

Laura LaVelle