Sagra del Gran Fritto Misto di Pesce

Why it's special

Fried fish is the unlikely summer ritual up here in Ruchè country, a hundred kilometres from the coast. Long trestle tables, 600-odd seats, a dance band each night — this is the Pro Loco's big weekend.

Programme · 2026

At the Cortile dei Camminatori di Domande, run by the Pro Loco di Castagnole Monferrato. Menu of antipasti, a first course, the gran fritto misto (calamari, prawns, anchovies and more), dolci and bar service.

• Book a table ahead — 600 seats fill on a warm June weekend.
• Reservations by phone or WhatsApp on 351 602 3379 (Pro Loco, 0141 292136).
• Bring cash.
• It's under cover in the Cortile dei Camminatori, so it runs rain or shine.

Fried fish, up here? Castagnole sits in the middle of the hills, a long way from any water, and yet the Pro Loco's biggest weekend of the year is a fish fry. Nobody in the village thinks that's odd. It's June, the Cortile dei Camminatori di Domande is set with long trestle tables, and by eight the platters of gran fritto misto — calamari, prawns, anchovies, whatever's crisp and hot — are going out to six hundred seats.

You order antipasti and a first course too, but the fritto is the point, poured with a young Monferrato red because that's what's to hand. When the plates clear, the tables get pushed back and a dance band takes over — a different one each night.

It's cheap, it's cash, and it's under cover, so a June thunderstorm won't stop it. Book ahead on the Pro Loco number; the tables go. The 18th edition ran in 2025, which tells you this is a fixture, not a one-off.

Come in daylight and the village around it is worth a wander — the Museo del Ruchè and the vineyards of Castagnole Monferrato are a short walk off.