The 2026 Winter Olympic Games are in full swing, but most athletes aren’t talking about medals or competitions. The topic taking Olympians by storm? Reviewing the Olympic Village’s dining halls.
Many of us still remember the chocolate muffin craze from the 2024 summer games. With a difficult treat to top, Milano Cortina dining halls are doing their best work to surpass the chocolatey goodness that stole athletes’ hearts a mere two years ago. Athletes from all over the world are posting reviews of the meals they are served, which leaves us watching from home to wonder, what is eating like in the Olympic Village?
Olympic Village Dining Halls
It won’t take more than a few scrolls on TikTok this week to see a video review of the Olympic Village dining experience. With the Games taking place in Italy, pizza and pasta options have become the stars of the show. Set up cafeteria style, the three main dining halls offer 24/7 service. According to the official Milano Cortina website, 10,800 meals are prepared each day amongst the three dining halls. With 18 chefs on rotation and almost 1,000 pounds of pasta, the athletes are guaranteed to hit their carb goals.
Matt Smith, a cross-country skier competing for Team South Africa, has become quite the pizza connoisseur following his arrival in Italy for the games. While he may be a daredevil on skis, he is also a risk-taking taste tester. Smith is attempting to try all of the dining hall pizzas, even testing out the bacon and egg pizza that was served for breakfast. From the smile on his face after the first bite, it’s safe to say Milano Cortina has the Italian staple down pat.
Athletes are not only amazed at the pizza, but Team USA snowboarder Hahna Norman says that the Olympic Village gnocchi is her version of the 2024 Games’ chocolate muffin, putting pasta at the top of the leaderboard as well.
https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZP89gAQ2V
Milano Cortina has a variety of food & beverage partners to help them keep athletes well-fed and competition ready. Coca-Cola, Corona Cero, and Herbalife are just a few of the big-name brands contributing to the dining halls’ success. These collaborations are keeping athletes happy and healthy while they wait for their next chance to bring home gold.
Save Room For Dessert
It’s safe to say that the chocolate muffins of the Paris 2024 Summer Olympics are gone but never forgotten. While it would be hard to top that level of fame, the chefs at the winter games seem to be giving the muffins a run for their money. The newest food to hit the headlines is the chocolate lava cake. Canadian Olympic hockey player Natalie Spooner has been on the hunt for chocolatey-goodness in the dining halls. In her TikTok playlist “Chocolate Monster,” she shared that she finally found the chocolate lava cake. After taking a bite and letting the sweetness sink in, Spooner says “This is like hitting the spot right now. So I’m going to give this a 9.1 out of 10.”
The chocolate lava cake isn’t the only sweet treat athletes are loving right now. The tiramisu is “insanely good,” according to Jonas Hasler, a snowboarder for Team Switzerland and “banging” according to Kristy Muir, a freestyle skier for Team Great Britain. The tiramisu is hard to find due to its popularity, but athletes are scouring the dining halls and waiting for their chance to get their hands on this decadent dessert.
The desserts are definitely one of the best parts of the Olympic dining experience. If there was an option to DoorDash the chocolate lava cakes from Italy all the way to Boston, I would not hesitate in emptying my pockets just to see what all the hype was about.