TORTA PARADISO

Just opposite the main entrance of the University of Pavia, on Strada Nuova, Enrico Vigoni opened its workshop in 1878. He had learned his demanding trade in Milan and was keen to test his own skills and creativity in his own right.

It was the Marquis Cusani Visconti who commissioned Enrico Vigoni to create a very special dessert. The tireless commitment of the young pastry chef from Pavia led to the creation of a special, exquisite, crumbly cake, with ingredients carefully measured out to ensure the cake stays fresh and delicious for a number of days. The first person to try it was a noblewoman who instantly called it the ‘Paradise Cake’. This became its name and was the sign of Enrico Vigoni’s success.

Other creations, including Baci del Signore (Kisses of the Lord – soft biscuits containing a thin layer of apricot jam and dipped in chocolate), Pesce di Aprile (April Fool) and San Sirino ( typical at the Festival of the Patron Saint of Pavia), followed and confirmed the skills of the young pastry chef, who very soon wanted a new, more fitting, setting for his products. Art Nouveau’ furnishings transformed his simple workshop into an elegant shop, a meeting point for his customers from Pavia, students and professors at the nearby University and the many tourists passing through. Upon the death of Enrico Vigoni, his daughter Maria continued her father’s work, helped by a team of very capable, expert pastry chefs who had been trained at the Vigoni workshop school, which had continued and continues to modernise to this day.

During the Sixties, the second shop was opened on Viale della Libertà (Piazza della Minerva), which at the time was a nerve centre along the state highway that joined Milan to Genoa.

During the Seventies, the historic shop on Corso Strada Nuova was modernised and expanded to the shop we know today.

Nowadays, the shops are still managed by the descendants of Enrico Vigoni, now in the fifth generation: the shops and workshops have been expanded and modernised, but the products have maintained that craftsmanship that guarantees high quality and respect for tradition.