Undoubtedly, cuisine is the main reason for the town’s fame abroad; in Parma and Emilia Romagna, the economy has been strongly related to agro-food industry and food tourism for many years. Therefore, foodstuffs are generally regarded with great attention: they are a frequent topic of conversation, not only among chefs and restaurant owners; people like to exchange recipes and cooking advice, and argue about their favourite dishes and restaurants. One may jokingly suggest that Parmesan people are actually obsessed with food; and they would simply answer that they have good reasons to be: famous specialities such as ham and Parmigiano cheese and other local delicacies, tasty and sometimes quite peculiar. A lot of specialities are there to be discovered!
The town is full of restaurants, diners, traditional grocery shops and bakeries where you can find all kinds of local delicacies. If you are interested in some food shopping, the central streets are the place to be: especially Via Farini, Via D’Azeglio, Via Repubblica and the alleys.