Do you remember those old-style shops where you could find almost everything, from basic food to home-ware, personal hygiene and cleaning products? This kind of shop in Italian is called a “drogheria”.

In the past there used to be a drogheria around every corner. Then, due to the opening of supermarkets and chains of convenience stores, they started closing, one after the other.

But some of them survived. Drogheria Rinaldi, located in the heart of Porta Palazzo market area, is one of them, and it can be considered one of the oldest drogheria still open in Turin.

The shop is quite small and narrow, with wooden boards on the floor and furniture that has been there for generations.

The variety of products is amazing: it goes from handmade soaps to tons of different candies and chocolates sold by weight; from honeys to almost every spice you can think of. But what I really love to come and buy at Drogheria Rinaldi is unpackaged tea, because the selection is remarkable. They have a lovely tea corner with an old wooden cupboard with many drawers and a dozen shelves with green tin boxes. 

It is one of those shops where you can still get in and ask for suggestions and advice about what to buy according to your tastes and needs: the owners know everything about the products they sell.