Venice
All vegetarian, all organic and largely vegan, this tiny cafe and wholefood shop offers a counter full of salads and grains that are shovelled onto plates…
Venice
All vegetarian, all organic and largely vegan, this tiny cafe and wholefood shop offers a counter full of salads and grains that are shovelled onto plates…
Venice
The Querini Stampalia's gorgeous cafe is a great place for a coffee or a snack, and also serves a range of reasonably priced pasta and rice dishes at…
Giudecca, Lido & the Southern Islands
Located in the old Lido fish market, al Mercà is popular with students who come for the abundant cicheti (Venetian tapas), outdoor seating and well-priced…
Santa Croce
A noisy, bustling trattoria in the middle of Sant'Ambrogio's covered food market, Rocco is a hot local spot for simple seasonal plates of Tuscan cuisine…
Duomo & Piazza della Signoria
One of those easy dining addresses that never fails to please, this casual ristorante-pizzeria cooks up superb pizza as well as all the traditional Tuscan…
Giudecca, Lido & the Southern Islands
No, you're not suffering from heat stroke – that really is a red double-decker bus parked up against the kerb. What's more, it's dishing out the Lido's…
Venice
Venice's only organic vegan restaurant serves delectable dishes such as Thai rice noodles, seitan lasagne and tempeh mafè (peanut butter sauce) with rice…
Giudecca, Lido & the Southern Islands
Beloved by locals, this charming fish restaurant serves classic Venetian dishes prepared with attention to quality. All desserts are homemade. In summer,…
Venice
This eatery serves pizza and freshly made pasta that you can see being prepared in the immaculate kitchen. There is also a small choice of mains and an…
Giudecca, Lido & the Southern Islands
This tiny artisanal ice-cream parlour prides itself on fresh ingredients and interesting flavours, such as cheesecake or walnut and fig. Vegan options…
Parma
Hidden behind the cathedral is this local favourite, a modern bistro clinging to traditional ways. It's most famous for its horse meat (a Parma speciality…
Bay of Naples
Right on a sandy beach with views of Procida and Ischia, this retro, sun-bleached restaurant enjoys cult status in Naples (book ahead on weekends). The…
Bologna
Despite its bow-tied waiters, the Biassanot is about as down to earth as its menu, which lists such rustic throwbacks as wild boar, rabbit and veal with…
Santa Croce
All-day dining and a pick-and-mix, all-fish menu gives this stylish restaurant instant appeal. Savour finger-licking giant red shrimps, wild concave…
Parma
Run the gauntlet of ham slicers and waiters gouging lumps of parmigiano reggiano and settle in for a memorable meal. Start with a plate of Parma ham,…
Sorrento
Despite its name, 'Green Sea' doesn't offer any water views. What it does deliver, however, are simple, tasty, surf-centric dishes, served in a spacious,…
Cilento Coast
On the road to Perdifumo, this is a favourite local choice. An unassuming place with a terrace, Il Capriccio has a gracious host in owner Enxo. The menu…
Tigullio & Baia del Levante
It really is worth stopping in to centuries-old Luchin to sample its peerless farinata (chickpea flour flat bread), baked over olive wood in copper pans…
Rimini
This lovely former inn just north of the old Roman bridge has welcomed travellers for over a century. Turquoise-aproned waiters zip between the covered…
Perugia
Dine at Il Sole and you'll be reminiscing about the engrossing views as much as the food. Taking in Perugia's rooftops and the verdant hills beyond, they…
Turin
This small dining room is run by a friendly young couple and makes a nice change from historic, moody Turin. A simple, architecturally astute fit-out…
Matera
Stone is where you go to find young company or late-night grub (or both). Cavernous (like everywhere in Matera), its brightly lit interior has been given…
Spoleto
With prime Piazza della Libertà patio seating and an airy dining room overlooking the Teatro Romano, this simple cafe-restaurant serves a well-rounded…
Central Sicily
It's all about the street food at this unassuming neighbourhood bar, complete with pavement patio. Scan the counter for cheap, filling bites such as pizza…
Capri
Tucked away in a corner, this place has a traditional trattoria atmosphere, with small rooms, decorative tiles and walls lined with bottles. Vegetarians…
Genoa
With gingham tablecloths and a cheery clatter emanating from the kitchen, Mangiabuono remains one of the city's fabulously unfancy trattorias. Come and…
Parma
Fiercely local and organic, this farm-to-table bistro, owned and operated solely by women, is on to something special: its primi menu offers tortelli…
Naples
Catholic kitsch, old photographs and a bucket of hot coals under the table to keep your tootsies toasty? No, you're not at nonna's house, just at one of…
Sorrento
With flower-topped tables and a film-like setting on an intimate side street, Da Gigino sets a charming scene for competent, homestyle feasting. Although…
San Polo & Santa Croce
Running this closet-sized cicheti counter are zemei (twins) Franco and Giovanni, who serve loyal regulars small bites with plenty of imagination:…
Rimini
A beloved Rimini institution, this sweet eatery just in from the beach serves some of the best and most diverse piadine (flatbread sandwiches) in town,…
San Polo & Santa Croce
Once an anarchist clubhouse, intimate, art-slung 'At the Crooked Bridge' serves up scrumptious cicheti (Venetian tapas), whether it's quiche or the famed…
Central Sicily
Exposed stone walls, low wooden ceiling, wine racks and a wood-fired pizza oven set a snug vibe at this local favourite. Admittedly, the pasta dishes are…
Trastevere & Gianicolo
On a quiet backstreet, La Botticella offers pure Roman cooking, outside under the lines of flapping washing or inside in the picture-lined salon. Menu…
Santa Croce
The menu at this Florence dining veteran is packed with classics like mozzarella di bufala with tomatoes or Tuscan prosciutto (spice-cured ham), pasta e…
Bologna
If you were to make a list of the great wonders of Italy, hidden amid Venice’s canals and Rome’s Colosseum would be cheap, pretension-free osterie (casual…
Ischia
Dating back decades, this restaurant has a lovely terrace decorated with copper pans, ceramic mugs and strings of garlic and chillies. Locals come for…
Taormina
Linen tables, gracious service and a romantic terrace overlooking the cathedral make Al Duomo the consummate romantic go-to. Dishes focus on Sicilian…
Pescara
Bringing Abruzzo's mountain cuisine to the coast, this osteria (tavern) brings hearty simplicity to the fore in dishes such as pasta alla gricia (pasta…
Monti, Esquilino & San Lorenzo
Throughout San Lorenzo’s metamorphosis from down-at-heel working-class district to down-at-heel student enclave, Trattoria Pommidoro has remained the same…