Where do you live?

In the very centre of Milan.

Which is your favourite Milan neighbourhood?

Largo Richini and the Statale university on Via Festa del Perdono. This area has remained unchanged by time and in the evenings, summer or winter, the Largo Richini garden is so poetic. I love the Navigli as well for the same reason but only in the winter when it’s less busy and definitely more atmospheric.

Which are your favourite Milan stores?

Donatella Pellini on Via Morigi and Via Manzoni for beautiful jewellery; L’Artigiano di Brera on Via Solferino for the incredible colour palette of its ballerina shoes; the antique jewel boutique Pennisi on Via Manzoni next to the Grand Hotel et de Milan; and finally, Mariza Tassy on Via Molino delle Armi for clothing.

And your favourite restaurants?

I rarely dine at restaurants but I like the Ai Ronchi trattoria on Via San Maurilio because it’s intimate, pleasurable and the food is great. El Brellin on Alzaia Naviglio Grande is beautiful and you can find some really well-cooked Milanese dishes.

Can you recommend any dishes to try?

The bollito misto (mixed cooked meat) or the tuna roast beef at Brellin. Or the risotto alla Milanese, of course.

Do you have a favourite local café?

There are bars where I’ll stop by during my working day for a quick coffee, like the bar Meda on Porta Romana. Then there are the ones where I go for pleasure when I have time – which means almost never! The first is the Taveggia on Visconti di Modrone and the second is Cucchi on Molino delle Armi at the corner with Corso Genova. They are both historical Milanese meeting points.

Do you have a favourite walk in Milan?

I like the walk from my store on Via Bergamini to the Scala and then Via Brera to Largo Treves. Or taking the backstreets of the Giardini delle Basiliche in San Lorenzo and continuing all the way behind Corso di Porta Ticinese, passing from Piazza Sant’Eustorgio and then returning towards Ripa Ticinese.

How do you like to travel around the city?

I walk. I use my car or taxis only when it’s urgent.

Which is Milan’s best landmark?

Since I don’t have an intense social life, I always appreciate the most calm attractions. Like, for example, waking up very early in the morning and going for a walk at Navigli. It feels like going back 100 years.

How would you spend an ideal day in the city?

If it was an early start, I’d begin with a walk in the Corso Venezia gardens, maybe combined with a visit to the natural history museum. Then a walk to Brera, lunch at one of the restaurants on Via Fiori Chiari and a further walk to aid digestion around the streets behind La Scala and, further on, around the five streets of Milan that form a star-like crossroad – Via Santa Marta, Via San Maurilio, Via Borromei and so on. Afterwards, an aperitivo at one of the many bars in the area, and back to the hotel for a quick rest before dinner.

Can you recommend any good hotels?

Locanda Solferino, where the restaurant is excellent as well. But I have to admit that I haven’t been for a long time. The Grand Hotel et de Milan is also very good, while the Manin on Via Manin is quite handy.

What can’t you live without?

My dogs, two female Scotties: one is white and the other is black. And my daily appointment with the birds that eat from my hands in Largo Richini.

Can you tell us a secret about Milan?

Milan is a city that has to be experienced against the tide, not for the usual reasons, work and shopping, that bring most visitors here, but for the magic corners of hidden history in a city that is still distinctive and intelligent. It’s all in the places that I have described, plus a few more: the Brera Academy, the botanical garden, the works of Leonardo da Vinci and, more than anything else, the city out of hours.