Brek (Restaurant chain), Torino

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This is a self service restaurant with good food and well priced. We were really getting hungry for vegetables and a salad so this place was perfect. We had lunch there which was very good - and we also had an evening meal of lasagna and a fruit dessert. There is a microwave to heat up the food - rather different. There are glasses for water. The interior is very warm and inviting with lots of tables inside and outside. The outside is a pleasant courtyard.

Favorite Dish: The lasagna was excellent. The salad bar was not available in the evening like it was for lunch .

I'd been to Breks in Vicenza and Milan before visiting the Turin restaurant. They're all very much the same across the chain which is one of the most widely-known brands in a format that's popular in Italy, the self-service restaurant. These places offer a selection of standard pastas and other primi piatti, salads and hot and cold meats at an affordable price, and are very popular with office workers.

As you may imagine, then, Brek isn't especially exciting or groundbreaking, but it is solid and reliable. The dishes change daily and there's always a decent range to choose from. Vegetarians will always find at least one pasta dish as well as salad. Best of all, the food is fresh, (largely) prepared on the premises and hot food is finished as you order it - pasta isn't left to disintegrate in congealing sauce, something I've seen time and again in the UK!

And for the price, the surroundings are nice too. There's a courtyard outside if the weather's good.

Brek is great if you want to fill up on on something tasty but don't have much time or the cash to spend.

Favorite Dish: I've never had anything bad at Brek, but nor have I had anything amazing. The reason the food is good is the standard and price - comparable to McDonald's, superior by far.

I called Brek a buffet but it is really more of a self-service cafeteria. Upon entrance you grab a tray and choose the foods you want. There are hot and cold dishes varying from pasta to soup to meat to salad. Prices vary by dish and by plate side. On your way out you can select a beverage and dessert. I typically have soup and pasta, or vegetables and pasta. Prices are reasonable and atmosphere is surprisingly non-abrasive for a self-serve cafeteria! Two locations, opening times vary. I know the one in Piazza Solferino is open on Sundays, but I am not sure about the one in Piazza Carlo Felice.

Good selection for vegetarians. Closes in the afternoon between lunch and dinner.

BREK an institution in big Italian cities.
I like to have dinner in Italy two times a day. My wife wants one. So this is the compromise. BREK is self service. But a lot of things are very fresh such as the pasta's and the meat; you can see they make it.
The public is pretty well to do despite the low prices. A lot of businessman and -woman choose for quick and healthy.
In there 200 people are eating, but you have the idea there are 35.

Favorite Dish: Very good pasta's for about 3,60 euro.
A simple lunch with wine, water, quiche, bread and saladbar is about 18 euro for two.

This is a nice self-service restaurant with a good variety of food and always fresh and "in time" cooked.

"Brek" is a self-service restaurant near the Porta Nuova railway station.
It is cheap and the dishes are good. Moreover, you'll be served by very kind people.