I love Italy’s wonderful regional diversity; friendly, hospitable people who know how to enjoy life; and simple, delicious food and wine. Every time I go, I make new discoveries, so this isn’t a definitive list of the best restaurants in Italy …
… just the ones I currently can’t wait to get back to. Some are frequented by tourists as well as locals and some are hidden gems. Some may get a Michelin mention and others just fly quietly under the radar doing what they do so well. All deliver food, wine and service that make them my ‘best restaurants in Italy’.
Ristorante Cocchi Parma (Emilia-Romagna)
One of Parma’s oldest restaurants is also one of its best with delicious traditional food, a deep and wonderful wine list and friendly professional service. I love a table in the atmospheric wine cellar. In a town where virtually every meal starts with a plate of salumi, it’s hard to find one that stands out – but here it’s all made from Parma’s famed black pigs and is the best I’ve had. Pasta is exceptional too as is the tagliata of rare Fassona beef.
Osteria la Gensola Rome (Lazio)
This simple, family-run osteria on a cobbled piazza in Bohemian Trastevere serves Sicilian and Roman dishes. Seafood arrives daily from the south coast and desserts, including an authentic cassata, come from Sicily twice a week. I dream of the deep-fried artichokes (carciofi alla giudìa), superb tiny tuna meatballs in a tomato and smoked provola sauce and rigatoni coda alla vaccinara.
Ristorante da Ciccio Amalfi (Campania)
Perched high on a cliff edge just north of Amalfi, this restaurant sources much of its produce from the family farm in Scala, high above the coast that provides its daily seafood. Spaghetti with tiny vongole veraci cooked ‘al cartoccio’ and served tableside is worth it for the theatre alone. Fish is also served tableside with the flesh expertly lifted from the bones. The wine list is great and they offer a taxi service to and from local hotels.
Antica Trattoria del Gallo Clusane (Lombardy)
This busy restaurant on Lago d’Iseo is a series of rooms in an ancient building, full of locals digging in to fish from the lake. A glass of Franciacorta (this is the region for it) and seafood antipasti is a great way to start. Followed by tench, perch (I like it crumbed), eel, or one of the other freshwater fish, ideally with a side of polenta cut with a string from a huge mound on a trolley wheeled from table to table.
Ristorante Buca Mario Florence (Tuscany)
Locals and tourist alike love this wonderfully atmospheric cellar restaurant close to the heart of the city, with waiters who know how to turn on the Italian charm. This is the place for classic Tuscan cooking, from ribollita (bread and bean soup) and bistecca Fiorentina carved tableside, to luscious fresh egg pasta and a memorable dessert trolley.
Trattoria al Gatto Nero Burano, Venice (Veneto)
On the colourful island of Burano, Max (the third generation of his family to run ‘the black cat’) will guide you through the menu of lagoon-fresh seafood. Seasonal seafood antipasto, so large it comes on several plates, is a meal in itself with things like king scallop in tomato sauce, tiny black mussels or razor clams in garlicky olive oil, steamed mantis prawns, octopus salad with herbs and celery, and baccalà of snapper. Save room for excellent tiramisu.
Updated 24 Nov 2024
