Amerigo is not in central Bologna. It takes a good 40 minutes by car to reach Savigno, a small village in the Apennine foothills south of the city. The drive is worth it. This is a Michelin-starred osteria that has been open since 1934, still run by the same family, and still serving the kind of food that requires being in the right place at the right time — truffles in autumn, mushrooms in October, game in winter. It is the kind of restaurant that reminds you why the Bolognese drive into the mountains on a Sunday.
Most visitors come for the truffles — Savigno is one of the main truffle territories around Bologna, and Amerigo builds much of its autumn menu around them. But the traditional dishes hold up on their own. The tortellini are made in-house and are genuinely small, the way they should be, and the broth is properly made. If you want to understand tortellini in brodo at a serious level, this is a reasonable place to start.
What We Ate
- Polentina con tartufo bianco — runny polenta topped with local white truffle. If you are driving to Savigno in autumn, you order this. There is no reason not to.
- Calzagatti con lardo — calzagatti (literally “cat’s socks”) is a mountain dish from the Bologna and Modena Apennines: polenta with beans, grilled or fried. Here each piece was wrapped in lardo di colonnata. An honest dish.
- Gnocchi al tartufo nero — potato gnocchi with Savigno black truffle. Straightforward and well made.
- Tortellini in brodo — properly tiny, served in a clean meat broth. This is the benchmark version.
- Risotto con gli ovuli — October is mushroom season, so a risotto with Caesar mushrooms (amanita caesarea). Good timing.
- Leprotto — young hare, served on pickled vegetables. Game on mountain menus is a tradition that is easy to overlook if you are not paying attention.
- Guancia di vitella — veal cheek, stewed with its own gravy and fried onions. An underused cut that Amerigo handles well.
- Gelato fior di latte — full-fat milk and cream ice cream with traditional balsamic vinegar poured over. Simple, and the best way to end the meal.
If you go specifically for the truffle hunting near Bologna, the white truffle season runs October through December. The restaurant is popular on weekends — book ahead.
Practical Information
- Address: Via Marconi, 14/16, Savigno (BO) — 40 minutes south of Bologna by car
- Best time to go: Autumn (October–December) for truffles and game; the menu follows the season
- Price: Mid-to-high range for a Michelin-starred osteria; good value given the ingredients
- Reservations: Essential, especially on weekends
Savigno is also the base for truffle hunting in the Bologna hills. Emilia Delizia has been running experiences in this area since 2008 — if you want to combine a hunt with lunch at Amerigo, it is a natural pairing for a full day out of the city.
See where the food actually comes from.
The
Emilia Delizia food tour takes you inside working Parmigiano, balsamic, and ham producers — rated 4.9 stars on TripAdvisor.
About Gabriele
My grandfather had a farm. He delivered milk to the local Parmigiano Reggiano cooperative every morning — the same kind of small family caseificio we visit on our tours today. The cheese was made a few kilometres away. The balsamic vinegar aged in the attic. We ate prosciutto that had been hanging in the cellar for two years.
I took all of this completely for granted, moved abroad, and then spent years being quietly horrified by what passed for Italian food everywhere else. Parmigiano that tasted of cardboard. Balsamic vinegar that was basically caramel syrup. Pasta from a tin. I’m not going to name countries.
I started Emilia Delizia in 2008 because I wanted people to understand what they were missing — and because watching someone’s face when they taste real 25-year balsamic for the first time never gets old. Seventeen years in, same producers, same obsession. Lonely Planet liked it. Channel 4 called us when they needed someone who actually knew the acetaias in Modena. TripAdvisor gave us 4.9 out of 5, which I’m choosing to interpret as proof that the other 0.1 of a star is simply unattainable.
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