The Urban Hive Hotel stands behind large windows along Corso Garibaldi. This long, partially paved and pedestrian street, in the heart of the Brera district where many artists once lived, is very popular for its fashionable boutiques and its row of bar and restaurant terraces. Only three metro stops separate the establishment from the central station. The tram, some of which are almost a century old, also serves the surrounding area.
You enter this modern hotel with pop and vintage accents through the comfortable bar, overlooking the street. Customers sip cocktails in large purple velvet armchairs printed with strings of hands armed with tubes of lipstick, pieces produced by the Italian design label Seletti, a boutique of which is a few steps away. Books on pop culture icons like Basquiat and Bowie occupy the shelves of a library along a teal wall.
Room 709 offers a view of the roofs and a building with a green façade. The city has a few of them, starting with the famous Bosco Verticale, this large landscaped architectural ensemble by Stefano Boeri, located not far away. A vintage rotary telephone sits on one of the bedside tables. Free weights and a yoga mat are available next to the desk. The continental breakfast buffet is served in a large mezzanine room overlooking the lobby. We have a front row seat to contemplate the awakening of the neighborhood.
At 150 meters: enjoy a good ice cream
When we talk about the many artisanal ice cream parlors, one name comes up more often than not in the mouths of local residents and onlookers: Oggi. This tiny shop offers a wide variety of fruit or herb sorbets – mint, basil – and a wide choice of chocolate ice creams, or with Italian classics such as coffee, tiramisu, pine nuts, ricotta or marsala .
At 350 meters: rediscover pasta italiana
La Fabbrica del Grano is a restaurant, a caterer and a delicatessen, all dedicated to pasta and the sauces that accompany it. This small brand, opened two years ago by a nutritionist doctor, exclusively sells products made from ancient cereals grown by its teams in Sicily, and not genetically modified. Plain or flavored, for example with saffron, spirulina, cocoa or coffee, these pastas turn out to be as exquisite as they are digestible.
You have 45% of this article left to read. The rest is reserved for subscribers.