Anima

Verdict: A Michelin-pedigreed hotel restaurant that earns its place at Milan's fine dining table

The common assumption about hotel restaurants is that they coast on captive guests and a well-known name above the door. Anima, inside the Milano Verticale | UNA Esperienze hotel in the Corso Como and Piazza Gae Aulenti district, works against that assumption. The restaurant operates under the oversight of multi-Michelin-starred chef Enrico Bartolini, with resident chef Michele Cobuzzi running the kitchen day-to-day. That two-tier structure could dilute accountability; here it appears to sharpen it. If you have been once and left satisfied, there is enough depth in Cobuzzi's Puglia-rooted cooking to warrant a return visit.

What to Expect

The room takes its design cues from the modernist language of Gio Ponti, the architect who shaped so much of mid-20th-century Milan's visual identity. That means minimalist lines, restrained material choices, and a space that feels considered rather than decorated. The address, Via Gaspare Rosales 4 in the 20124 district, places you between the design-forward energy of Corso Como and the corporate geometry of Piazza Gae Aulenti, a pairing that accurately describes the clientele: creative industry on one side, finance and tech on the other.

Cobuzzi's cooking draws heavily on his origins in Puglia. Vegetables are treated with real seriousness, and bread-making is given the kind of attention that most kitchens reserve for protein. For returning guests, this is the thread worth following: order around the vegetable courses and the bread programme rather than defaulting to whatever carries the most recognisable protein. The wine list is extended by a cocktail selection that mixes original, internationally inspired drinks alongside classics, which is worth noting if you are arriving for a pre-dinner drink rather than heading straight to the table.

Lunch vs. Dinner at Anima

This is a genuinely useful distinction here. Dinner at Anima carries the full formal weight of the Bartolini association: the room is more composed, the pace slower, and the experience pitched squarely at the €€€€ tier that characterises every serious address in this category in Milan, from Seta to Andrea Aprea. If you are booking for a business dinner or a special occasion, dinner is the right call.

Lunch, however, is where Anima offers the better value equation for a returning visitor. The Corso Como and Gae Aulenti location means the lunch crowd is active and purposeful rather than tourist-heavy, and the kitchen's Pugliese focus on vegetables and bread plays more naturally in a lighter midday format. For anyone who wants to assess the kitchen's actual technical range before committing to a full dinner outlay, a well-chosen lunch is the smarter first repeat visit. Italy's broader fine dining culture, from Osteria Francescana in Modena to Dal Pescatore in Runate, has long supported the idea that lunch at a serious restaurant delivers more restaurant per euro than dinner.

Who Should Book

Anima makes the most sense for three profiles: guests staying at or near the Milano Verticale who want a credible fine dining option without leaving the building; returning diners who explored the room once and want to go deeper into Cobuzzi's vegetable-focused approach; and anyone who finds Milan's other Bartolini address, the two-Michelin-starred Enrico Bartolini at MUDEC, too formal or too difficult to book on short notice. Anima is the more accessible entry point into the same culinary orbit.

It is less well-suited to diners seeking the kind of avant-garde provocation offered by Cracco in Galleria, or the garden-rooted tasting menu experience at Horto. If your priority is maximum technical experimentation per euro, there are sharper addresses in Milan. If you want a room with genuine design intelligence, a chef with a clear regional point of view, and a connection to one of Italy's most decorated culinary figures, Anima delivers a coherent, well-executed case for itself.

Booking and Practical Notes

Booking difficulty is rated easy. The hotel setting means availability is generally more open than at standalone destination restaurants, and the location in the Gae Aulenti district puts it within walking distance of the northern Navigli metro connections and the central business district. Dress expectations align with the room: smart casual is the floor, business smart is unremarkable. Price range is not confirmed in our data, but the Bartolini association and hotel context firmly position this in the premium tier. Cross-reference with our full Milan restaurants guide for current pricing context across the category.

For those building a wider Milan itinerary, the Milan bars guide, Milan experiences guide, and Milan wineries guide are useful companions. Italy's broader fine dining map, including Reale in Castel di Sangro, Uliassi in Senigallia, Quattro Passi in Marina del Cantone, and Atelier Moessmer Norbert Niederkofler in Brunico, gives useful reference points for how Puglia-influenced modern Italian cooking sits within the national conversation. Internationally, the precise, product-led discipline seen here has parallels at venues like Le Bernardin in New York City and the collaborative tasting model at Lazy Bear in San Francisco.

Quick reference: Via Gaspare Rosales 4, 20124 Milan. Inside Milano Verticale | UNA Esperienze hotel. Booking difficulty: easy. Price tier: premium (confirm current menus directly). Lunch recommended for returning visitors seeking value; dinner for formal occasions.