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Rome
2.5 - 3 hours
Rome: Pasta & Tiramisu Class with Fine Wine by the Vatican
Discover the secrets to making authentic homemade pasta and tiramisu from a local chef. The cooking class takes place in a locally loved restaurant,...
from€35Check dates
History
Culatello di Zibello DOP belongs to the Bassa, the flat river country north of Parma where winter fog and summer heat swing the cellars through the cycles the meat needs. Documented at the Farnese court from the 15th century, it lost ground to industrial hams before Slow Food and a handful of families, the Spigaroli among them, rebuilt its name. Each piece ages 12 to 40 months tied in netting, checked by nose and needle.
Book a food experience
Tours, tastings and classes from the cities on this page, bookable on GetYourGuide.
Naples
3 hours
Naples Official Pizza Making Class & Tiramisu with wood oven
Roll up your sleeves and discover the flavors of Naples by making authentic pizza and creamy tiramisù with a passionate local chef. Cook, laugh, eat,...
from€29Check dates
Florence
Day trip · 12 hours
From Florence: Siena, San Gimignano, Pisa & Lunch at Winery
Discover the Chianti vineyards and medieval architecture of Siena, San Gimignano, and Pisa on a full-day tour. Depart from Florence and explore...
from€135Check dates
Make it at home
Ingredients
- 150g Culatello di Zibello DOP, sliced thin
- Unsalted butter at room temperature
- Rustic bread or warm torta fritta
- A dry Lambrusco or Fortana to pour
Method
- Unwrap the culatello 30 minutes before serving so the aroma opens.
- Butter thick slices of bread very lightly; butter is the classic Bassa pairing.
- Lay the slices over the bread or serve them alone on a wooden board.
- Pour a dry, cold Lambrusco or Fortana; the fizz cuts the richness.
- Eat slowly. Cooking it would be a crime in two provinces.
Tip from the editors. Real Zibello culatello is scarce; if a menu lists the age and producer, order it there and buy vacuum-packed at a salumeria for home.
Where to eat culatello di zibello
Culatello di Zibello in Parma
Al Vedel ★ 4.5
Al Vedel in Colorno near Parma pairs an elegant dining room with the Podere Cadassa cellars, where the family ages its own culatello below the inn.
OrderCulatello di Zibello in three ages, then anolini in brodo.
BookA few days ahead
TipThe restaurant dates its hospitality to 1780 and the culatello cellars can be visited before lunch if you ask when booking. Closed Monday and Tuesday.
Antica Corte Pallavicina 1 ★ ★ 4.8
Antica Corte Pallavicina, Massimo Spigaroli's castle farm on the Po near Parma, has held a Michelin star since 2011 and ages culatello in its cellars.
OrderThe culatello vertical, sliced across several ageings from the cellars below.
Book2-4 weeks for weekends ahead
TipCome early and book the cellar visit: the culatello ageing rooms under the dining room are the point of the trip, 40 minutes from Parma.
La Filoma ★ 4.0
La Filoma bills itself as the oldest restaurant name in Parma and cooks like it: culatello with Parmigiano, black-truffle risotto and proper tortelli.
OrderCulatello di Zibello DOP with shaved Parmigiano Reggiano.
TipThe claim to be Parma's oldest dining room is the house's own, but the belle-epoque interior near the Duomo does most of the convincing.
Degusteria Romani ★ 4.1
Degusteria Romani turns the Silvano Romani salumi counter into table service on Borgo Palmia in Parma: culatello flights, verticals, Emilian glasses.
OrderThe culatello and Parmigiano vertical with a Malvasia.
PourMalvasia di Candia with a culatello tasting board
WineEmilian labels built around the salumi counter
FoodSilvano Romani's cut-to-order salumi and cheese tastings
TipIt shares ownership with the Prosciutteria shop on Farini, so taste here and buy the vacuum-packed take-home versions there.
Osteria Ardenga ★ 4.2
Osteria Ardenga is the Bassa's kept secret near Parma: farmhouse rooms at Diolo where culatello, mariola and anolini stay at village prices.
Why locals goIt sits in Diolo, a hamlet in the culatello lowlands most drivers pass on the way to Zibello's famous names.
TipLunch is the service that matters; pair it with a stop at a Bassa curing cellar and the Po embankment road.
More cities are in research. Want culatello di zibello covered somewhere specific? Tell us where you want to eat.