After more than 90 years serving bread to tourists, local residents and even Popes, the historic Panificio Arrigoni in Rome’s Borgo Pio neighbourhood is closing doors this Saturday.
The owner, Angelo Arrigoni, claims that lack of customers and rising energy costs were the main reasons for the decision.
“For the residents of this area, since it is convenient to give houses to foreigners, they have given them all to agencies that rent them to foreigners, understand? And so the type of work has changed, but the municipality is obtuse. If things changes in such an area, you must be the first to protect it. This street here used to be full of artisans, it was beautiful, but now they have all left”, laments bakery owner Angelo Arrigoni.
The Roman establishment counted every pontiff from Pius XI to Francis amongst its customers. The news were met with disbelief in the Vatican.
“The Vatican reacted badly, even Monsignor Fisichella (Pro-prefect for the Section of New Evangelization of the Dicastery for Evangelization, ed.), who seems to me to be interested in restoring the neighbourhood, but I think there is nothing more to be done here because by now there is decay all over the street”, added Angelo Arrigoni.
The oven that has been baking bread for over 90 years was closed down on Tuesday and with it is also slice of Roman life that disappears.
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