San Polo & Santa Croce
Watch the world drift down the Grand Canal outside or canoodle indoors, but prepare to sit up and pay attention once the food arrives. Pesador reinvents…
Must-see restaurants in Italy
Syracuse
Any restaurant that is full on a Monday night in February is doing something right. Old-timer waiters weave their way through snug, art-slung dining rooms…
Bari
This long-established Barese osteria (casual tavern) features no menu, just a chalkboard displaying what's cooking that day. It's all salt-of-the-earth…
Modena
Homemade Modenese miracles are forged in this low-key dining room spread with tortelloni-yellow tablecloths and hung with jerseys and racing-car photos. A…
Venice
All the makings of a true Venetian osteria (casual tavern) – hidden location, casks of wine, chandeliers that look like medieval torture devices – plus…
Livorno
This bakery in the Mercato Centrale, at the start of the far-left aisle when entering the market from Via del Cardinale, specialises in gluten-free breads…
Southern Tuscany
Wine barrels turned into tables and benches set the scene at this casual trattoria and wine bar. Inside it's a mass of bottles, plastic grapes and the odd…
Taormina
While it won't blow your culinary socks off, homely Tiramisù remains a local institution for its reliable standbys. Tuck into wood-fired pizzas, fragrant…
Santa Maria Novella
Come the weekend, this no-frills trattoria gets packed with families lunching with gusto on its astonishingly good-value Tuscan cuisine. Lunch, moreover,…
Cosenza
There's no sea in Cosenza, yet the seafood is spot on at this diminutive family restaurant just off the city's main pedestrian street. With Sicily so…
Cilento Coast
Run by the Egidio family, this pasticceria (pastry shop) has a cake display backed by a large bakery where breads including integrale (whole-wheat) arrive…
Cilento Coast
An upper-crust pizza place on a pretty piazza with magnificent rubber trees and wisteria-draped walls. Sit outside or eat on the go. The pizzas include…
Modena
Get in early! This restaurant is highly regarded for its classic, regional cooking, not least its signature scaloppina al balsamico (cutlets in balsamic…
Tridente, Trevi & the Quirinale
Occupying several narrow rooms with patterned tiled floors and arched exposed-stone ceilings, this place is more expensive than the average osteria …
Murano, Burano & the Northern Islands
Seek out this vintage osteria (casual tavern) where glass-blowers head for plates of frittura mista (mixed fried fish), seafood risotto and spaghetti…
Corso Magenta & Sant'Ambrogio
Is this the ultimate in Milan-style Japanese dining? The dramatically designed space puts the spotlight on the kitchen which prepares traditional sashimi…
Matera
Proudly proclaiming itself to be the first of its kind in Sasso Barisano, this informal restaurant set in arched whitewashed rooms has been trading since…
Salerno & the Cilento
Easy to find on the main road through town, this bright, spacious restaurant with exposed stone walls has a small front terrace flanked by scarlet…
Oltrarno
Crostini topped with aphrodisiacal white-truffle shavings, deep-fried zucchini (courgette) flowers or artichokes and homemade walnut liqueur are a few of…
Turin
Turin's sushi obsession runs possibly only second to Milan's. Yes, like many of its counterparts, Oinos offers top-quality traditional Japanese raw plates…
Monti, Esquilino & San Lorenzo
Fast food with a difference, the modestly sized bowls of pasta whipped up at this friendly place come with your sauce of choice – including carbonara,…
Oltrarno
With tables beneath parasols bang-slap on enchanting Piazza Santo Spirito and a traditional Tuscan kitchen that churns out the classics pretty much all…
Ravenna
Economical prices, formidable home cooking and an attractive front terrace that's good for people-watching mean this bustling trattoria can be crowded,…
Santa Croce
Built atop Roman ruins, this wine specialist has two entrances – one with pavement terrace on people-busy Borgo dei Greci and another on a Florentine…
Volterra
Volterra's best-known fine-dining establishment serves traditional Tuscan dishes on well-spaced tables in its vaulted 15th-century dining areas; there's…
Merano (Meran)
This brewery restaurant has a huge beer garden and a number of beautifully designed and cosy dining rooms. Come for pints accompanied by roast pork,…
Eastern Tuscany
This pizzeria-bar buzzes with young locals at weekends, who pile into the cavernous space to enjoy pizzas and calzoni cooked forno à legna (in a…
Ristorante Il Chiasso dal 1973
Elba
Tucked down an alley (chiasso) enlivened only by the odd line of washing, Il Chiasso has been serving up simply cooked seafood since 1973 and has a loyal…
Tridente, Trevi & the Quirinale
This buzzy, blindingly white space is a popular all-day dining spot. The focus is on organic Slow Food dishes using seasonal Appellation d'Origine…
Lago Trasimeno
Sunset is prime time for lake viewing from the flowery terrace of this old-town restaurant, housed in a converted 17th-century olive mill. Inside, a fire…
Bologna
Landlocked Bolognese flock to this city seafooder, which sources its wares daily from Milano Maritima on the Romagna coast. Standouts on the snarky menu…
Elba
Staff shuck fresh oysters and prepare platters of raw seafood treats at a counter in the middle of this hugely popular osteria, taking care of the…
Palermo
Tables line the footpath and colourful children's paintings beam down from bright-red walls at this bustling family-run trattoria, in business since 1944…
Venice
Midway through museum crawls from Accademia to Ca' Rezzonico, Toletta satisfies starving artists with lip-smacking, grilled-to-order panini (sandwiches),…
Udine
This low-key restaurant, spread over two floors, is known for its quality produce. It's a great place to try frico (fried cheese), which is served both…
San Polo & Santa Croce
Along with a dozen other things, Marco Polo is said to have introduced ice cream to Venice after his odyssey to China. At this gelato shop the…
Tridente, Trevi & the Quirinale
Possibly one of the most elegant addresses near Trevi Fountain, this French-style brasserie has all-day dining in an interior of polished wood, potted…
Vieste
Tucked away in a picturesque narrow alley in the heart of the old town, this welcoming osteria has a cosy cave-like interior and outdoor seating under a…
Langhe, Roero & Monferrato
You can take the sun on the terrace in summer or warm up by the open fire on chilly days and enjoy simple, traditional dishes like tajarin al ragù di…
Aeolian Islands
Numbering among Alicudi's few year-round residents are this local fisherman and his wife, who can arrange simple but tasty home-cooked meals any time of…
