And welcome back to regular posts! Eataly is an Italian chain of what was originally grocery stores with restaurants inside, but the concept has over time changed to be more of a collection of restaurants with some groceries scattered around -- that will probably make more sense when we get inside. Eataly started in 2007 with a store in Turin and expanded considerably in the 2010s, both around Italy and in many other parts of the world, and in recent years has opened a lot of locations in airports and train stations around Italy, largely displacing the Autogrill chain. As you can see from this picture, this location is in a train station too, but in a different way!
Huh, I was wondering if you'd get a chance to visit an Autogrill. It is one of the things I remember most about Italy. I know that sounds strange, but I guess that wouldn't be unusual for anyone who reads these retail blogs, lol. Well, this isn't an Autogrill, but I guess this comes somewhat close! It'll be interesting to see what this is like on the inside.
ReplyDeleteWell... things are a little more complicated than I implied there. The Autogrill brand is a lot less common than it was the last time I visited Italy (it's pretty much just used at freeway service plazas now), but the Autogrill company still operates a lot of the food service places in Italy's airports and train stations. They've just shifted to the same model used in US airports, where there are a few companies that run most of the concessions but instead of using their own names, they license/franchise names from other local or chain businesses. I guess that's not anything new for Autogrill (heck, HMS Host, which I was going to mention as a US example, was apparently owned by Autogrill until last year), but they used to use their own name a lot more than they do now. Anyway, one of the (many) brands Autogrill licenses is Eataly, so the Eataly locations that replaced all those Autogrills are still, kind of, Autogrills!
DeleteI only vaguely remember Autogrill from my earlier trips to Italy -- I think I only ate at one once, out at the airport. (The one in Termini looked cool, but I don't think I ever ate there.) I remember generally not being impressed by what Autogrill sold -- the food I got from Eataly at Termini was quite good, but that was just a couple croissants for breakfast, and it's difficult to find croissants in Italy that aren't good!