Restaurants in Northern Sardinia
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Osteria Taverna Paradiso
This unpretentious trattoria is presided over by Pasquale Nocella, the artistic-looking guy with the wild hair. The food here is excellent: hearty plates of grilled steak, mountains of steaming pasta, and lots and lots of cheese. The osteria has even won awards for its cheese. The pasta with aubergines and smoked ricotta packs a flavourful punch.
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Trattoria Maristella
Visitors and locals flock to this bustling little trattoria for reliable seafood and local specialities such as culurgiones (ravioli stuffed with potato, pecorino cheese and mint) and crema catalana, a delicious creamy dessert. Booking recommended.
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Hotel Ristorante Gallura
Unlike the hotel, the restaurant of the Gallura is absolutely top-notch. The menu reads like a dictionary of Gallurese dishes, and the waiters dash back and forth carrying intriguing platters of exotic food such as smoked cuttlefish with wild beetroot, fish cooked in a paste of courgette and ricotta, and rabbit in saffron. Go with the recommendations - it's all good.
Lovely Rita Denza, the maestro behind it all, flits from table to table in her apron making sure her customers can navigate the multitude of choices. Reservations are essential.
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Andrieni
This is Alghero's restaurant of the moment. In summer outdoor tables are set beneath the huge fig tree, where you dine on innovative dishes mixing cured meats and fruit, delicately cooked fish with seasonal vegetables and herbs, and some excellent grilled and roasted meats. The wine list is a weighty tome, and you need a menu for the cheese trolley. Unfortunately, the maître d' is a little on the haughty side.
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Trattoria L'Assassino
This trattoria is hidden away in a back alley off Piazza Tola. The more adventurous will step beyond the set meal and try a selection of 10 starters. These can include classics such as funghi arrosto (roasted mushrooms) and lumaconi (big snails). If you get really lucky you may find calf's testicles on the menu as well.
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Antica Posta
A new venture on one of the busiest streets in the old town, this is a wine bar-cum-grill room of the 'industrial architecture' type. Unlike many places in Sassari, it serves modern Sardinian food such as grilled steaks and fillet of fresh fish, as well as some interesting pastas like fregola con funghi (pasta with mushrooms).
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Ristorante Canne al Vento
A classic restaurant with a bamboo-covered terrace, the Canne al Vento has been serving Gallurese food here since 1957. It's still the best restaurant in town. Try the unusual local specialities, such as suppa cuata (cheese and bread broth) or pasta with bottarga (mullet roe). The management also has 22 rooms.
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Nettuno
In a great location with a 3rd-floor terrace overlooking the port, Nettuno's atmosphere is positively boisterous and the boating décor jollies the whole thing along. The pasta with clams is the thing to eat here - the delicious aroma pervades the restaurant. Follow it with a plate of barbequed king prawns.
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Osteria Macchiavello
This is a restaurant for those who want full-on meaty flavours. Grilled meats include horse, beef and (sorry about this) - donkey. Alternatively, there's a tasty wild-boar ragù and a few fishy dishes, including zuppa di polpi e patate (octopus and potato soup) as a whet-your-appetite starter.
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Posada del Mar
A formal little place, Posada del Mar has tables covered in flowery tablecloths intimately arranged beneath its big barrel vaults. In summer the French doors are opened to the piazzetta outside. The house speciality is the ricci (sea urchins), although pizza is also served in the evenings.
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La Lepanto
This has long been Alghero's top fish restaurant: check out the grand tank of fish as you enter, the packed tables and the waiters run off their feet. But it has to be said that service and food are not what they used to be - the increase in tourist trade has dulled Lepanto's innovative edge.
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Il Pavone
A classic of the Alghero dining scene, Il Pavone isn't as grand as other restaurants like the Andrieni or La Lepanto, but the service is a lot more palatable. Tables overlook the lively Piazza Sulis and the food is seasonal, a mixture of Mediterranean and innovative Sardinian dishes.
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Al Tuguri
This cosy Catalan house serves dishes based on the fresh fish of the day, tuna, squid, rock lobster and the very best bottarga (mullet roe). It also has a range of speciality pastas, such as the maltagliati con carciofi e fave (pasta with artichokes and fava beans).
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Ristorante Pizzeria La Lampara
Down in a residential neighbourhood, this informal spot is popular with locals and visitors alike. Sit down on the roadside terrace and tuck into local speciality ravioli Gallurese dolci (sweet ravioli) or a crunchy fritto misto (mixed fish fry).
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Il Castello
This wildly popular place serves monstrous portions of pasta and some justifiably famous meat platters. The most mind-blowing is the Chateaubriand steak (for two people), which arrives on its own trolley accompanied by a mountain of chips and grilled vegetables.
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Trattoria da Antonio
Affectionately known as Lu Panzone (the Big Belly), this boisterous, old-school trattoria does a great line in homespun, no-nonsense food. Think antipasti of salami, ham and cheese followed by steaming portions of pasta and hunks of grilled meat.
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L'Antica Hostaria
L'Antica enjoys a reputation as one of Sassari's top addresses. In intimate surroundings you are treated to inventive cuisine rooted in local tradition. Meat lovers should try the tagliata di manzo con rucola (thinly sliced beef with rocket).
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La Vela Latina
This restaurant has a handful of tables in a nicely restored building and on the pleasant veranda. The menu changes with the seasons: there's lots of seafood (including good swordfish) in summer, and meats and mushrooms from autumn into winter.
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San Giorgio
One of the best eateries in Palau, this pizzeria-cum-restaurant is housed in a large chalet-style building near Hotel La Roccia. The pizzas are pretty good but pride of place goes to the spaghetti allo scoglio (with mixed seafood).
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Trattoria Pizzeria L’Olimpico
Escape the obvious tourist traps to this popular local eatery in the bland streets east of Maddalena’s centre. The food is excellent – pizzas and the usual array of pastas, meats and seafood – and the friendly service a real pleasure.
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Ristorante da Paolo
This place offers several variations on that favourite Sardinian theme, horse meat, alongside other more palatable Gallurese dishes. Gobble your choice up in the cosy atmosphere created by the exposed stone walls and timber ceilings.
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Trattoria Da Gesuino
Hidden away in the newer part of town, Da Gesuino hits exactly the right tone. It’s relaxed but service is efficient, the interior is inviting and the food is excellent. Pizzas are always a good choice as is the delicious risotto.
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Zhanto
Like a welcoming family home, Zhanto has good food and the bonus of a garden. There's an excellent choice of antipasti and some speciality pasta dishes - try the ravioli di mazzancolle (ravioli stuffed with king prawns).
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Barbagia
Barbagia is one of the best spots in Olbia to get a taste of the traditional Sardinian cuisine of the interior. All sorts of odd names in Sardinian, which no amount of Italian will help you recognise, pop out of the menu at you.
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Da Pietro
With its stone vaulted ceiling, intimate atmosphere and traditional menu, this is an archetypal Sardinian trattoria. If you’ve never had ricci (sea urchins), a prized local speciality, this is a good place to try them.
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