Celebrated each autumn on October 27, National Breadstick Day pays flavorful tribute to one of the world’s most irresistible table starters: the breadstick. While American dining popularised soft, warm garlic-butter breadsticks, the authentic historical ancestor is the crisp, pencil-thin grissino born in the Piedmont region of Northern Italy.
The Royal Cure of Duke Vittorio Amedeo II (1679)
According to historical records from the House of Savoy, the grissino was invented in 1679 by Turin baker Antonio Brunero under instructions from the royal physician Teobaldo Pecchio. The young Duke Vittorio Amedeo II suffered from delicate intestinal health and could not properly digest the moist crumb of traditional bread. Brunero rolled the dough into pencil-thin strips and baked them thoroughly until completely dry and crispy. The digestive cure worked brilliantly, and grissini torinesi rapidly became the darling of Piedmontese nobility.
Napoleon’s "Little Canes of Turin"
By the nineteenth century, grissini had conquered European aristocracy. Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte was so enchanted by them that he established a dedicated courier carriage between Turin and Paris solely to deliver his beloved "les petits bâtons de Turin." Today, whether savored authentic and snappy wrapped in Prosciutto di Parma or enjoyed soft and buttery alongside pasta, breadsticks remain an international culinary treasure.
