Il forno di San Leo

The Toscano loaf that keeps a village bakery going

The bread to ask for is the Toscano di Vittorio, the loaf named for the baker whose work the present bakers carry forward, and it is still the reason most of San Leo walks up to this counter. Il Forno di San Leo, also known as Forno e Bottega di San Leo, is the artisan bakery of the historic borgo in the province of Rimini, and its range stays deliberately narrow: loaves, focaccia, breadsticks, stuffed baguettes, pizza in pala and croissants, all baked fresh each day. Sourcing is organic and local, with Type 0 and Type 1 flours from Azienda Agricola TREC. The Baguette Rustica, made with Type 0 flour and rye, shows the bakery is not living on one village loaf alone. Gambero Rosso listed it in the Pane e Territorio guide for 2026.

A laboratory in the historic centre, a bottega at the front

Baking happens in a dedicated laboratory in the historic centre, a few steps from the main piazza, and the bottega nearby is the retail face of it. That split gives the place a practical rhythm: bread and pastry are made in the lab, then sold across the counter as everyday goods for residents and for the visitors the bakers call tourists of bread. It reads as a point of reference for the whole borgo rather than a destination set apart from it, which is also why it sits comfortably inside Emilia-Romagna's Andar per pani e forni movement around breads, ovens and small producers. The bakery works with the Cooperativa di Comunità Fermenti Leontine as well, hosting students and visitors who come to see San Leo, look around the laboratory and taste what came out of it that morning.

Come for bread, and in autumn for the Piada dei Morti

Start with the Toscano di Vittorio if the visit is about one thing. After that the savoury side is the strongest reason to keep choosing: focaccia, breadsticks, stuffed baguettes and pizza in pala all come out of the same daily bake, and croissants cover breakfast. The seasonal item worth timing a trip around is the Piada dei Morti, the Romagnola flatbread tied to the Day of the Dead, which the bakery has entered in San Leo's competition dedicated to it. Its version uses the same organic Type 0 and Type 1 flours from Azienda Agricola TREC, with mosto and local ingredients, so it tastes of the sourcing that runs through the bread. Buy a loaf, add whatever flatbread is out, and the place explains itself.