Fortezza Medicea restaurant

The medieval fortress and prison which houses the restaurant.

The Fortezza Medicea is the name of a restaurant in Volterra, Italy. It is housed in the town's Renaissance-era fortress (Fortezza Medicea, Medici fortress), built 1474, which is a high-security prison for criminals serving no less than seven years.^[1]

In 2006, the prison's administration began operating a restaurant within the prison, using inmates as staff, as a rehabilitation scheme.^[2] The project was successful in attracting clients and the attention of the international press. Despite the inconveniences of dining in the Fortezza – clients must pass a background check and several checkpoints, and all cutlery is plastic – tables, as of 2007, had to be booked weeks in advance.^[3]

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