Are you here just to eat, or to also get an authentic taste of space-age and mid-century modern ? Autogrill, an Italian institution, certainly more than a simple rest area for motorists or a petrol station. Notice how in first pic, in the flat countryside near Lainate, on the horizon stands the unmistakable tripod of the most famous Autogrill of all, built in 1958: exit Villoresi Ovest. The first dates back to 1947 when Mario Pavesi, a young Lombard entrepreneur, opened a shop selling biscuits produced in his family factory, on the Milan-Turin motorway near Novara toll booth (pic 2), setting a new standard: a bar with tables, armchairs and an external pergola to welcome customers in a comfortable space, rather than just selling goods. During the 1950s architect Angelo Bianchetti became the almost sole bearer of the space-age renewal of motorway aesthetics, working both for Pavesi and its competitor Motta, when the two confectionery companies began a bitter battle to obtain building contracts of new Autogrill in traffic crucial points. '58 Villoresi Ovest (following pics) stands out: a circular glass restaurant, topped by 3 reinforced concrete arches that raise the sign to 51m, still identical today, looking like a missile launch pad. Actually restored in 2020 during the covid pandemic. So recognizable that it was similarly replicated in other areas such as the Ronco Scrivia one, Serravalle-Genoa motorway. The following pics show Bianchetti's early-60s spaceship approach: big bridges over the lanes, angular, slender and asymmetrical, flights of side stairs and panoramic windows for eating above the cars whizzing by below, restaurant, bakery and shop. Back then called ocean liners, monuments of futurism and automotive architecture, still today standing and well. #autogrill #angelobianchetti #pavesi #motta #autogrillpavesi #fiat #fiat1100 #alfaromeo #alfaromeogiulietta #alfaromeogiuliettati #alfaromeo1900 #fiattopolino #lanciaappia #anni50 #1950s #italiancars #classiccars #midcenturymodern #spaceage #populuxe #italianarchitecture #boomeconomico #fiat125 #fiat1800 #fiat2300 #spaceera #italianstyle #autostrada #alfaromeogiuliettasprint #giuliettasprint