Stracciatella gelato—a creamy combination of milk, egg yolks, vanilla, sugar, and dark chocolate shavings—is Italy's answer to chocolate-chip ice cream. While you'll see the flavor in gelaterie across Italy, one pastry shop, and city, Bergamo, claims it as its own. In 1961, Enrico Panatttoni, the pasticceria's founder is said to have invented the concoction and called it La Stracciatella alla Romana after a Roman soup with eggs in broth.

With tables outside overlooking the hills unfolding below, bar-pasticceria La Marianna is the perfect place for lunch on the hoof. Leave room for gelato – one of Italy’s iconic flavours, stracciatella (chocolate-veined cream), was born here in 1961, and the Panattoni family still make it with a bain marie to melt the chocolate by hand.

Fiordilatte arricchito da grossi pezzi di cioccolato fondente. A battezzarla in questo modo nel 1961 è stato Enrico Panattoni, padre di Popi (il soprannome di Fabrizio) e nonno di Niccolò, attualmente al timone del bar pasticceria La Marianna: l'idea ha origine dalla ricetta della stracciatella alla romana (brodo bollente, in cui viene immerso un uovo crudo che, per via dell'alta temperatura, si 'straccia' nel piatto) e arriva nel bancone freezer. «Facciamo pochi gusti, tutti tradizionali, perché mio nonno amava il gelato dei suoi tempi» racconta Niccolò Panattoni, che, nonostante la sua giovane età (31 anni, ndr), bazzica nel locale da quando era bambino.

Il luogo in questione si chiama Pasticceria La Marianna, che offre sedute in una piazzetta interna ombreggiata da alberi e rampicanti. Ideale per una colazione o uno spuntino prima o dopo un concerto pomeridiano, La Marianna è una vera istituzione locale, che ha adibito anche uno spazio alla ristorazione gourmet (non testata da noi). Io consiglio di fare una colazione con Polenta e Osei, il dolce tipico di Bergamo e poi fare un giro per la città, che in alcuni periodi dell’anno offre anche mercatino vintage e del disco.

Did you know that Italy’s stracciatella gelato flavor was invented right here in Bergamo?. The owner of Upper Bergamo’s Pasticceria La Marianna (right in Colle Aperto) created the recipe in 1961 by mimicking his recipe for stracciatella soup(broth with beaten egg) – mixing cream gelato with broken ribbons of dark chocolate (a bit like chocolate chip ice cream). You can wait in line (there’s always a line!) for the original stracciatella gelato at La Marianna (or order it in the outdoor seating area).

The very fact that stracciatella gelato – a favourite of mine, delicious fior di latte with chunks of shaved dark chocolate folded through it – was invented right here in Bergamo in 1961 at Pasticceria La Marianna should be enough to make it worth a trip!. Below I’ve highlighted some other must tries too, including the little marzipan treats you can see in the top left of the photo underneath and casoncelli, meat-filled ravioli-like pasta typical of Bergamo.

The story of stracciatella begins at La Marianna, a historic ice cream shop in Colle Aperto, Bergamo’s Upper Town. Its inventor, Enrico Panattoni, was inspired by the popular Roman soup of the same name, which features beaten eggs swirling in hot broth. Panattoni sought to replicate this “torn” effect in ice cream by pouring hot liquid chocolate into a creamy base, creating the iconic chocolate shards that define stracciatella.

Located in a spectacular position along the city wall boulevard, just in front of the Adalberto tower, La Marianna restaurant features spacious rooms and a roof garden, which are located on the second floor of the pastry shop bearing the same name – the one where in 1961 owner Enrico Panattoni invented the famous stracciatella ice cream.

To end the day on a sweet note, make your way to one of the several gelaterias to try stracciatella, which was invented right here at the pasticceria La Marianna. Also try the dessert polenta and osei, topped with chocolate marzipan birds, this sponge cake made with chocolate, butter and hazelnut creams is typical to the region.

Our hotel manager shared this salient snippet as we cruised by ‘La Marianna’ where it was (supposedly) first created. Naturally, I assumed he was lying to boost the trade at his cousin’s café, but I Googled this and it turned out he was telling the truth. Stracciatella is yummy, it’s like chocolate chip but better.

In front of the Donizetti theater every friday night at Balzer, the patisserie that hosted on its table Maria Callas, Gavazzeni, Mastroianni, Gassman and many other people from the world of entertainment and politics, there is a rich happy hour as at La Marianna, the historic cafè in the Upper City.

Continue through Passaggio Torre di Adalberto (Adalberto Tower Passage) until you reach Largo Colle Aperto. Here you’ll find “La Marianna,” a historic ice cream parlour renowned for inventing the award-winning stracciatella-flavoured ice cream. I highly recommend you make a delightful stop.

Summer or winter, you must try the ice cream at the local patisserie La Marianna (just behind Piazza della Citadella). It’s luxurious here. This is where the Stracciatella flavour originated, so if you want to know what Stracciatella is really supposed to taste like, head here.

Just outside the walls of the old citadel, lies La Marianna. The latter is a vintage pastry shop famous for inventing the stracciatella ice-cream flavour back in 1961. By the way, this ice cream flavour is the most popular one throughout Bergamo.

Ristorante La Marianna in Bergamo is a charming eatery known for its traditional Italian cuisine. Nestled in a historic setting, it offers a cozy ambiance and delightful dishes, making it a favorite among locals and tourists alike.

A UNIQUE PLACE – Its position, surrounded by the Venetian Walls on the Upper Town Hills and overlooking the “Colle Aperto”, aka the beautiful panoramic plaza in the heart of the old town, makes La Marianna a truly unique place.

Whilst you’re admiring the walls, you may find yourself drifting along to La Marianna. Perfect for a break, try the renowned la stracciatella, their specialty originating here in 1961. It’s delicious, regardless of the weather!

Itinerary: Rocca di Bergamo, Via Bartolomeo Colleoni, Antico Lavatoio, Piazza Vecchia, Piazza Duomo, Bergamo Cathedral, Santa Maria Maggiore, Cappella Colleoni, Via Bartolomeo Colleoni, La Marianna Pasticceria Bar, Viewpoints

I’ve been back to Bergamo several times since, once especially to try La Marianna’s straciatella ice cream after learning that it was they who in 1961 invented the vanilla gelato flavor laced with chips of chocolate.

La Marianna is a traditional gelateria in Bergamo, known for creating stracciatela ice cream. By savouring this creamy and delicious ice cream, you’ll be experiencing a true local delicacy.

La Marianna: This monument, located in the gardens of Piazza della Libertà, is dedicated to the female figure and her emancipation. La Marianna is a symbol of Italian national unity.

Conclude your day with a romantic dinner at La Marianna, a cozy restaurant with a warm and inviting atmosphere. Enjoy a taste of traditional Bergamo cuisine with a modern twist.

In 1961, stracciatella was first made in Bergamo, at the Ristorante La Marianna. This dessert was inspired by the stracciatella soup, with broth and egg as the main ingredients.

La Marianna is a famous gelateria and pastry shop in the heart of Città Alta. They invented the flavor of Stracciatella, a silky vanilla cream mixed with chocolate shavings.

Ti portiamo lì con Italo: collegamenti comodi, economici e veloci da tante città italiane (approfittane anche per Santa Lucia: Bergamo è piena di cose divertenti da fare).

Another dessert to try, is the stracciatella icecream from La Marianna, it is where it was first created and they continue to make it in the same way.

And there’s no better place to experience it than La Marianna, the very spot where stracciatella ice cream was invented back in 1961.

LA MARIANNA: Historic restaurant with ice cream and pastry located in Colle Aperto one of the sights of the city.