3 Best Restaurants in Quadrilatero, Milan

Modern Italian cuisine made using interesting ingredients is the draw at this restaurant with sophisticated brown-and-turquoise decor in Milan's Mandarin Oriental Hotel. The best way to experience the intricate dishes is through the seven-course tasting menu; for a less expensive option, opt for the three-course “carte blanche” lunch menu. With more than 1,000 labels on the extensive wine list and a focus on Italian producers, you’re guaranteed to find something wonderful to accompany your meal.

One of the few restaurants open after La Scala lets out, Don Carlos, in the Grand Hotel et de Milan, is nothing like its indecisive operatic namesake (whose betrothed was stolen by his father). Flavors are bold, presentation is precise and full of flair, service is attentive, and the walls are blanketed with sketches of the theater. The low-key opera recordings are every bit as well chosen as the wine list, setting the perfect stage for discreet business negotiation or, better yet, refined romance.

This neighborhood restaurant is hidden behind Via Montenapoleone and thus handy to the restaurant-scarce Quadrilatero. What the menu lacks in originality it makes up for with reliable consistency in dishes like pizza and cotoletta. Clients include families from this well-heeled area, professionals, football players, and television stars. Like any Italian restaurant, it's not child-friendly in an American sense—no high chairs or children's menu—but children will find food they like.