Piedmont · Cuneo
Bra
A Roero town where Carlo Petrini founded Slow Food in 1986 and the world's first gastronomic university now teaches food systems.
Known for
SLOW FOOD
International headquarters of the Slow Food movement, founded in town by Carlo Petrini in 1986; host of the biennial Cheese fair.
BRA DOP
Cow's-milk cheese (with up to 10% sheep or goat) granted DOC in 1982 and DOP in 1996, in hard (duro) and tender (tenero) forms.
SALSICCIA DI BRA
Ground veal sausage with the local right to be eaten raw; subject of the BRA'S festival in the centro storico.
When to visit
Best · Apr–Oct
- J
- F
- M
- A
- M
- J
- J
- A
- S
- O
- N
- D
- Best
- Hot or crowded
- Quiet
- Mostly closed
The festa: santuario della Madonna dei Fiori, lunedì successivo alla terza domenica
Why come
Bra sits in the Roero hills, fifty kilometers southeast of Torino, on the north edge of the Langhe-Roero-Monferrato UNESCO wine landscape. Carlo Petrini founded Slow Food here in 1986 in response to a McDonald's planned next to the Spanish Steps in Rome. The movement still has its headquarters in town.
In 1999 Bra was one of the four founding cities of Cittaslow, the small-town quality-of-life network. The University of Gastronomic Sciences, founded by Slow Food in 2004, runs from the former royal estate at Pollenzo, a frazione of Bra. The biennial Cheese fair, the largest event in the world for raw-milk cheeses, fills the centro storico in odd-numbered Septembers.
Bra cheese has been a DOP since 1996, and the salsiccia di Bra, ground veal traditionally eaten raw, has its own annual festival. Above the town stands the Zizzola, an octagonal nineteenth-century pavilion that gives the city its panorama over the Langhe.
The Sunday letter
We haven’t written Bra’s letter yet.
One town every Sunday, with the photo, the food, the festa. Be there when this one comes up. Free, by Peter & Sophia from Pietrasanta.
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What to see
La Zizzola
Octagonal nineteenth-century pavilion on the hill above town, the symbol of Bra and the best panoramic point over the Langhe and Roero.
Palazzo Mathis
Fourteenth-century palazzo on the central piazza with frescoed main floor and eighteenth-century oil-painted door covers, now used for exhibitions.
Palazzo Traversa
Fifteenth-century building housing the Museo di Archeologia, Storia e Arte, with finds from the Roman colony of Pollentia.
Pollenzo
Frazione on the Tanaro built over the Roman Pollentia; now home to the University of Gastronomic Sciences in the former Savoy royal estate.
Centro storico
Long porticoed Corso Garibaldi and Via Cavour, lined with Piedmontese Baroque palazzi and historic cafés.
The slow-trip planner
Building a trip? Find where Bra fits in a slow Italy circuit.
Answer five questions. We will shape a geographically coherent slow trip from the 1,000 Italian towns most travelers skip. Yours to save and share.
We recommend
Where to eat and stay
Not our picks, but places the guides put their name to — a Michelin star, a Gambero Rosso fork, a Slow Food snail, a Michelin Key for the hotels. Worth a table, a counter, or a night when you pass through.
BattaglinoRistorante
Battaglino has a Michelin Bib Gourmand, one Gambero Rosso fork (79/100) and a Slow Food snail.
BoccondivinoRistorante
Boccondivino holds a Michelin Bib Gourmand and a Slow Food snail.
Caffè Pasticceria ConversoPasticceria
Caffè Pasticceria Converso has a place on Italy's historic-locali register to its name.
Osteria del BoccondivinoTrattoria
Osteria del Boccondivino holds two Gambero Rosso prawns.
Osteria La PimpinellaRistorante
Osteria La Pimpinella holds a Michelin Bib Gourmand.
Scuderie SabaudeRistorante
Scuderie Sabaude holds a spot in the Michelin Guide.
Signature product
Bra DOPDOP
Cuneo-province cow's-milk cheese, semi-hard, in two ages (tenero, duro); named for the town that holds the late-September Slow Food cheese fair.
See every town in our catalogue producing Bra DOP.
Signature dish
Salsiccia di BraMeat
A soft, finely minced raw veal sausage, once granted a special licence to be eaten uncooked.
See every town in our catalogue with a dish of its own.
Living here
- Population 29,523
- Commuter belti
- Pharmacy in town
- High school within a 30-minute drive
- Train station in the comune
- Nearest airport Turin, 1 h 13 min drive
- Regional capital Torino, 54 min drive
Tags & datadesignations · numbers · sources
Recognised as
The numbers
- Elevation: 290 m
- Population: 29,523
- Surface area: 59.53 km²
These figures were compiled from public directories — ISTAT, OpenStreetMap, Wikidata — and from the official listings of the guides named on this page. Town details change; verify with official sources before you travel.
Close by
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🏛️ UNESCO
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