In search of... Cool air and levity in the grottos of southern Switzerland

Grottos began as natural rock cellars for storing food, ingeniously harnessing the air currents within rock formations to maintain consistent temperatures. Some grottos have been expanded, fitted with terraces and used as restaurants in summer. Grottos remain very popular for casual, unpretentious dining.

A wide shaded path leads left past a row of stone houses with grottos. In front of one house, a man sits at a stone table, barely visible. On the right side of the road stands a chestnut tree, its branch reaching across the street. — The street between Bondo and Promontogno in 1927, featuring grottos and chestnut trees (Zinggeler archive, NL. EAD-ZING-1981)

Picture a scene with wine, cheese, sausage, polenta and the sound of mandolins; a cheerful crowd of guests at stone tables beneath chestnut trees, somewhere in Canton Ticino or the southern valleys of Graubünden. This captures the quintessential image of a type of tavern known as a grotto. Here we look at how the grotto earned its place on the list of Switzerland’s living traditions.

A constant cool breeze

For a long time, natural rock cellars have been used for food storage in Ticino and the southern regions of Graubünden. People needed ample space and a cool, stable climate for storing wine, as well as provisions like cheese, cured meats and vegetables.

The ideal conditions in these rock cellars are due to temperature differences between the air masses around the porous rock walls and the exterior of the grotto. The natural cavities and fissures in the rocks on the back wall, along with air vents deliberately left in the outer walls during construction, create a continuous exchange of warm and cool air in the storage space. Grottos maintain stable year-round temperatures of around 10 to 12 degrees Celsius, which is ideal for food storage. They are typically located just outside of villages, usually near shade-providing trees that contribute additional cooling on hot summer days. These stone cellars were gradually expanded and were extended with additional rooms, evolving into modest dwellings.

On the left side of a shaded path, several grottos are lined up in a row. The entrances to the stone buildings are visible, along with a stairway leading up the slope. To the right of the path there are chestnut trees full of leaves, with a stone wall behind them. — The grottos of Cevio, shaded by chestnut trees, 1931 (Zinggeler archive, NL. EAD-ZING-5567)

The last decades of the 19th century saw grotti – the plural of ‘grotto’ in Italian – blossom into popular social hubs, drawing villagers together for summer drinking and dining. Over time, the grottos opened their doors to visitors, serving wine and other beverages while offering unpretentious food. The 2 June 1928 edition of Il San Bernardino features an article called “I nostri Grotti!!” describing the connection between spring's arrival and cheerful gatherings at the grotto. While grottos were initially open only on special occasions like holidays, their opening hours were gradually extended until they became proper dining establishments.

Mediterranean levity and joie de vivre

As tourism developed, grottos gained recognition even north of the Alps. On 15 October 1937, Die Neuen Zürcher Nachrichten wrote about the “sunny southern atmosphere” of a grotto that had been temporarily set up in a Zurich department store. A Ticino-style grotto was also set up at the 1939 national Exhibition, as the Neue Zürcher Zeitung wrote on 23 October 1939 in their coverage of the Ticino farewell celebration: “People would have been happy to see the grotto stay open longer.” Two decades later, the grotto ticinese was once again the place to be, this time at the Bern Exhibition BEA, as reported by the Journal du Jura on 16 May 1960. The grotto's appeal also didn't go unnoticed by Ticino-born former President Flavio Cotti, who strategically chose a grotto as the backdrop for his December 1997 interview with the Brückenbauer.

Restaurants north of the Alps also began calling themselves grotti, like the “Sonnenstube Tessin”, embracing the traditions of southern Switzerland: levity, good company and delicious food. What seemed exotic in earlier times has now become a permanent fixture of Swiss restaurant culture, even north of the Alps. In Italian-speaking Switzerland, the grotto tradition continues to flourish: local establishments specialising in traditional cuisine made from regional ingredients, particularly during the summer season.

Refrigeration replaces tradition – preserving architectural heritage

With the spread of home refrigerators after World War II, the natural cooling system of the grotto was surpassed by modern technology. With their storage role obsolete, many grotti were abandoned, and some buildings deteriorated. However, this architectural tradition deserves preservation. Preservation efforts include initiatives such as the Sentiero dei Grotti trail in Cevio (Maggia Valley), the grotto circuit through Cama in Misox and the Cantine di Mendrisio project.

Two-story grotto viewed from the front, surrounded by leafless trees. The entrance door at street level is closed, dry leaves are scattered on the ground. Stone walls flank the entrance on both sides, offering themselves as seats. — Waiting for spring: entrance to a grotto in San Giorgio, Losone, around 1920, where customers have yet to become active. (Zinggeler archive, NL. EAD-ZING-4258)

The grotto represents time-honoured construction methods, regional cuisine, food preservation and community gathering – elements of a living tradition documented at the Swiss National Library.

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In search of... Cool air and levity in the grottos of southern Switzerland

A constant cool breeze

Mediterranean levity and joie de vivre

Refrigeration replaces tradition – preserving architectural heritage

Bibliography and sources

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