Dolci Tipici Bergamaschi Polenta e Osei - Traditional Bergamo Sweets: Polenta e Osei

Not Just Polenta: Exploring the Traditional Sweets of Bergamo

The City Food and Wine

27 January 2026

Bergamo is not just historic monuments, cobbled alleys, and breathtaking views. The city of Bergamo is also home to a rich heritage of traditional sweets that tells a story of centuries of tradition, artisanal passion, and genuine ingredients.

Traditional Bergamo desserts represent the most authentic soul of this area, where every recipe carries with it stories of families, patron saint festivals, and skilled pastry chefs who have passed down their secrets from generation to generation. Among Bergamo’s typical products, sweet specialties hold a place of honor, standing alongside the famous cheeses and cured meats of the local tradition.

Those visiting Bergamo should not limit themselves to admiring the Upper Town or strolling along the Venetian Walls: they should also stop by one of the historic pastry shops to taste these delights that blend rustic simplicity with refined pastry-making. From the famous sweet polenta to fragrant cookies, each creation tells a piece of Bergamo’s cultural story.

What are the Traditional Sweets of Bergamo?

Bergamo’s pastry tradition boasts a rich and varied repertoire, where ancient preparations coexist with more recent creations. Each dessert has its own unique story and a specific time of year when it is traditionally prepared, although today many of them are available year-round in the city’s finest pastry shops.

Polenta e Osei

When talking about Bergamo desserts, the first name that comes to mind is undoubtedly sweet polenta e osei. This pastry masterpiece is probably the most recognizable symbol of the local sweet tradition. Created by Bergamo pastry chef Giovanni Manenti in the early 20th century, this specialty is a perfect example of pastry creativity inspired by rural life.

The dessert faithfully reproduces the appearance of polenta taragna with little birds (osei in the Bergamo dialect), a traditional dish of humble mountain cuisine. The base consists of a very soft sponge cake soaked in liqueur or syrup, filled with buttercream and covered with a yellow almond paste that perfectly imitates polenta.

To complete the work, small birds made of colored marzipan and chocolate are delicately placed on the surface. It is not just a dessert, but a true edible sculpture that requires great skill to prepare.

Polentine e Osei Bergamasche

Donizetti Cake

Dedicated to the famous Bergamo composer Gaetano Donizetti, this traditional Bergamo dessert combines elegance and indulgence.

The Donizetti cake (Turta del Donizet in the Bergamo dialect) comes in the form of a delicious ring-shaped cake made with wheat flour, potato starch, egg whites, butter, powdered sugar, and candied pineapple and apricots flavored with maraschino. The cake is finally dusted with powdered sugar and is traditionally served with tea.

This specialty is often prepared for holidays and celebrations, representing a perfect balance between the simplicity of its ingredients and the richness of the final result.

Donizetti Cake (Torta Donizetti)

Quarenghi Cake

Less well known than polenta e osei, but just as delicious, the Quarenghi cake is a hazelnut cake named after the Bergamo-born neoclassical architect Giacomo Quarenghi.

It is a soft and moist cake, prepared with a generous amount of toasted, finely ground hazelnuts that give it an intense and enveloping aroma.

The distinctive feature of this dessert lies in its velvety texture and the bold flavor of figs, pears, and chocolate, making it perfect to enjoy with a coffee or a glass of sweet wine. It is often served dusted with powdered sugar or covered with a light dark chocolate glaze.

The Traditional Cookies of Bergamo

Bergamo’s cookie-making tradition is equally rich and well worth discovering. Among the most beloved specialties are:

Schiacciata bergamasca: a leavened cake typical of the Carnival period, soft and fragrant with butter, lemon, and yogurt.
Sweet polenta: prepared with corn flour, butter, sugar, and raisins, baked until crisp on the outside and soft on the inside.
Bergamo-style cookies: fragrant shortcrust cookies enriched with almonds and natural flavorings.
Biscotti del Bigio: a typical crumbly, dunking shortbread cookie shaped like a crescent, suitable for any time of day. Created in 1932 in San Pellegrino Terme by Luigi “Bigio,” a puppeteer and pastry chef, who is said to have given them to the audience during his shows. Today, this treat has become a true must for every tourist visiting or passing through the Brembana Valley.

Traditional Cookies of Bergamo

Stracciatella: a Bergamo invention

Not everyone knows that stracciatella, now famous all over the world, was born right in Bergamo. In 1961, pastry chef Enrico Panattoni of the historic Pasticceria La Marianna had the brilliant idea of enriching fior di latte gelato with shavings of dark chocolate.

This simple yet revolutionary idea conquered taste buds worldwide, becoming one of the most loved gelato flavors ever.

Even today, Pasticceria La Marianna in the Upper Town is an essential reference point for anyone wishing to taste the original stracciatella, prepared according to the authentic recipe that made it famous.

Stracciatella Bergamasca

For those who want to turn the discovery of Bergamo’s traditional sweets into an even more special experience, an original idea is to do so aboard a tuk tuk. The tours by Bergamo By Tuk Tuk allow you to move comfortably between the Upper Town and the Lower Town, reaching historic pastry shops, iconic cafés, and artisan workshops without stress or steep climbs. A pleasant way to enjoy stracciatella, cookies, and traditional desserts while also taking in views and stories shared by a local guide.

Where to buy Traditional Bergamo Sweets

To truly savor authentic Bergamo sweet specialties, it is essential to visit historic pastry shops and artisan workshops that still follow traditional recipes today. Here is a selection of the best places, divided between Upper Town and Lower Town.

Pastry shops in the Upper Town

The upper part of the city, with its medieval atmosphere and characteristic alleys, hosts some of the most renowned pastry shops:

Pasticceria La Marianna (Largo Colle Aperto): an absolute institution for original stracciatella and other traditional desserts.
Pasticceria Cavour (Via Gombito 7): located in the heart of the Upper Town, offering an excellent selection of polenta e osei and classic cakes.
Pasticceria/Panetteria Nessi (Via Gombito 34): a historic pastry shop that has been offering high-quality Bergamo specialties since 1923.

Walking along Via Colleoni or stopping in Piazza Vecchia, it is impossible to resist the scent of butter and almonds wafting from the historic shops. Many visitors choose to buy traditional sweets as gastronomic souvenirs to take home.

Pastry shops in the Lower Town

The modern part of Bergamo also boasts excellent addresses for dessert lovers:

Balzer Cioccolato e Caffè: in addition to artisanal chocolate, it offers modern interpretations of traditional desserts.
Pasticceria Salvi – a historic pastry shop on Via Torquato Tasso in the heart of the Lower Town, known for artisanal sweets and typical Bergamo cakes such as the Donizetti Cake and other traditional pastries.
Pasticceria Krizia – a highly appreciated pastry shop on Via Carlo Baioni, ideal for breakfast sweets, pastries, and local specialties to enjoy with cappuccino or tea. (Lower Town area)
Pasticceria Sant’Anna Bergamo – a traditional pastry shop on Via Borgo Palazzo, perfect for tasting Bergamo sweets and typical baked goods.
Officina del Dolce (alternatively artisan) – a small artisanal workshop on Via Zambonate offering creative, high-quality desserts for a sweet moment in the Lower Town.

In the Lower Town, there are also many bakeries offering more homemade and rustic versions of traditional sweets, often at more affordable prices than high-end pastry shops.

During the holiday season, many locals prefer to order their favorite specialties in advance directly from artisan workshops.

Tuk Tuk Tour in Bergamo to Discover Traditional Pastry Shops

Markets and specialty shops

For those looking for packaged local products to take home or give as gifts, gourmet specialty shops in Bergamo’s historic center (both in the Upper Town and the Lower Town) offer gift boxes of cookies, traditional sweets, and local specialties.

During fairs, seasonal markets, or local markets (such as those held in Lower Town squares on weekends), it is possible to meet artisan producers offering traditional sweets and local products for purchase.

Regarding fairs and markets in Bergamo, you can read Mercatanti in Fiera: the international event that brings Bergamo to life.

FAQ: Frequently Asked Questions about Bergamo Sweets

What is the typical dessert of Bergamo?

The typical Bergamo dessert par excellence is undoubtedly polenta e osei, a high-end pastry creation that recreates the famous rustic dish of peasant tradition in a sweet version. This masterpiece, with its sponge cake base, buttercream filling, and yellow almond paste coating decorated with marzipan birds, represents the emblem of Bergamo pastry-making and is recognized throughout Italy as a symbol of the city.

What is a typical Bergamo dessert made with polenta?

In addition to the aforementioned polenta e osei, there is sweet polenta, a more rustic and homemade preparation made with corn flour, butter, sugar, and sultana raisins. This dessert is baked until it develops a golden, crispy surface while maintaining a soft center. It represents the most authentic and popular version of the sweet tradition linked to polenta, a fundamental ingredient of Bergamo cuisine in all its forms.

What is the typical dessert of Bergamo Upper Town?

In the Upper Town, the reigning dessert is undoubtedly the stracciatella from Pasticceria La Marianna, where this famous gelato flavor was invented in 1961. In addition to this icon of world gelato-making, the Upper Town offers the finest interpretations of polenta e osei and Donizetti cake, prepared according to historic recipes handed down by families of pastry chefs who have worked for generations within the Venetian walls. The historic pastry shops along Via Colleoni and Via Gombito are the reference point for tasting the most authentic and refined specialties of Bergamo’s sweet tradition.