Walking into this shop in Rivoli you are met by shelves filled with breads such as biovette, ciabatte, micche and grissini, all made with sourdough. A variety of flours is used: type 1 and 2, wholemeal, durum wheat, wheat germ, barley and rye. The glass display counter displays savoury products such as pizza, mini-pizza, focaccia and canapés – made with basil and tomatoes from Mario’s own garden and oregano from Calabria – and goodies such as cakes, bavaroises, zeppole, dry biscuits, individual portions of semifreddi (the most popular being hazelnut, plain chocolate, lemon and quince), plus the Rivoli speciality: R-shaped Rivolotti, with cocoa and hazelnut. A novelty is the savoury pastry “lingua di Rivoli”.
This family business became into being in 1989. Mario Sparti is assisted in the bakery by his son Leonardo, 28, while his wife Sara Porrovecchio and daughter work behind the counter. Mario is a Master of the Bread Academy and deputy president of the Craft Bakers Association of the Province of Turin. Panettone and colomba are on sale at Christmas and Easter, and coloured grissini and bread made with solely natural ingredients are available on order. Opening hours: 6am-2.30pm and 4pm-7.30pm, Saturday 6am-1.30pm. Closed on Sunday.
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