Since March 2018, Ristorante Lino has undertaken a new growth path aimed at affirming its culinary identity in the national gastronomic scenario, with the intention of making the most of the traditions and typical flavours of Pavia and Italy.
Lino’s mission finds declination in two different restaurant concepts:
The Bistrot, with a simple and delicious cuisine, and the new Gastronomic Restaurant, expression of the research work on the product and dynamic flavours of chefs Andrea Ribaldone and Federico Sgorbini.

Located in Piazza del Lino at number 15, in the historical heart of Pavia, the Lino Bistrot welcomes its customers in bright rooms framed by large windows, Art Deco internal design and a comfortable atmosphere. A pleasant outdoor terrace is set up in the warmer months of the year, ideal for an aperitif and long summer dinners.

The name of the Lino celebrates the beautiful square where it’s located, not as a simple homage, but with the intention of welcoming the historical dignity of a place so important for the city and to perpetuate its value.

Historical facts

Until the mid-19th century the square was known as Piazza del Popolo, a meeting place for the city. Then flax cultivations became relevant in the area around Pavia and it was necessary to find a space for trading, Piazza del Popolo seemed to be the ideal place: a central area, dedicated to trade where local farmers could sell their high quality yarns.

An elegant plant with a straight but fragile stem, the linen is characterized by large blue flowers and its adaptability to different climatic conditions; the cultivation, both for its rich seeds and its stems, has very ancient origins and in the middle age it spread mainly in northern Italy and increased during the industrial textile development. The production of high quality yarns began in Italy in the 11th century.

Towards the end of the 19th century Bernardo Arnaboldi Gazzaniga, mayor of Pavia, did his best to ensure that the city had a new center of commercial bargaining; a gallery was thus built with an octagonal plan in the center surmounted by an iron and double-glazed armor which took its name from its benefactor, Galleria and Cupola Arnaboldi (1879-1882), and that still is a point of reference for local farmers.

Piazza del Lino was then harmonized into the urban project, thus becoming a marvelous multi-level garden, in the middle of which, later, the national monument dedicated to the Cairoli family (1898-1900) was placed.