NoLo: The Milan Neighbourhood Nobody Called That Until 2016

NoLo, short for "Nord di Loreto," did not exist as a name before 2016. The acronym caught on in the 2010s through local initiatives and social media, and in just a few years the neighbourhood became one of the most photographed in Milan. Before that it was Turro, the south-eastern edge of Greco, a working-class district with strong immigrant communities (Egyptian, Sri Lankan, and Chinese above all). Today it is where Milan experiments with slow gentrification, murals, African markets, and shade beneath the plane trees.

Via Padova and Milan's most multicultural market

Via Padova is the neighbourhood's backbone: four kilometres of ethnic shops, Eritrean restaurants, Chinese emporiums, halal butchers, Egyptian groceries. The Saturday morning market on Viale Monza is among the most authentic in the city. If you are hungry for a non-Italian Milan, spend an afternoon walking here.

Via Pontano and NoLo's street art

In 2016 the Urban Solid collective launched "OUT", a trail of fourteen murals along Via Pontano that turns the street into an open-air museum, complete with captions like a real gallery. Born as an urban-regeneration project, it remains one of the city's most interesting street-art routes. A few minutes on foot from Metro Rovereto.

Ghe pensi mi and the cafés of Via Popoli Uniti

Via Popoli Uniti is the fulcrum of today's NoLo: specialty roasters, craft bars, Peruvian restaurants, coworking spaces. It is where the neighbourhood's three cultures (the old working class, the migrant communities, and the young Italian newcomers) intersect most gracefully. Excellent Sunday brunch.

Bar Basso and the story of the Negroni Sbagliato

It is not strictly in NoLo, but rather in Loreto, and worth the extra kilometre: Bar Basso, on Via Plinio, invented the Negroni Sbagliato in 1972 (using Prosecco in place of gin). Open since 1947, with its original interiors and half-litre martinis, it is packed with designers during Design Week.

Cinema Beltrade and neighbourhood culture

Cinema Beltrade, on Via Nino Oxilia, is one of Milan's last arthouse cinemas — small screen, films in original language, a carefully curated programme. Born from the restoration of an old neighbourhood cinema. Check the schedule before you go.

The ballatoio tenements of Via Meucci

As in Isola, NoLo still holds ballatoio tenements from the early twentieth century: the house on Via Meucci is one of the most photographed, with its rows of hanging laundry. Wandering between Via Meucci, Via Popoli Uniti, and Piazza Morbegno restores a sense of the neighbourhood before it became fashionable.

How to see it in an afternoon

Metro Rovereto or Loreto. Route: Via Pontano with the "OUT" street art, Via Popoli Uniti (coffee or lunch), Via Padova north (ethnic emporiums), Piazzale Loreto for the return. If you stay for aperitivo, head to Bar Basso or one of the new bars on Via Popoli Uniti.

Is NoLo still "real"?

It is in transition. The old Egyptian shops and African markets are still there, but rents have doubled in five years. Come before it is too late, and know that today three different versions of Milan still share the same street.

What to see near NoLo?

NoLo borders Isola to the west (twenty minutes on foot), the Turro-Greco-Precotto area to the north, and Città Studi to the south-east. If you only have one day for non-tourist Milan, Isola paired with NoLo is the best combination. See also Secret Milan.