5 Best Restaurants in The Italian Riviera, Italy

In the local dialect, bontà nascoste means "hidden goodness," a reference to its back-alleyway location and consistently delicious dishes, which include fresh pasta, local fish, and a handful of meat choices. There are only six tables (and a couple more outside in summer), so reserve ahead.

There's usually a crowd of locals congregated at this lively bar and restaurant, often accompanied by their dogs and children. In the morning, tasty brioches start off the festivities and segue neatly into lunch. Alongside the usual range of beers and wines, the bar serves panini made to order and some toothsome pastries, while the restaurant menu has meat and seafood options as well as salads and pizzas.

It bills itself as a pizzeria, focacceria (endemic in these parts), and an insalateria. The pizzas are magnificent, as are their first cousins the focaccia. But if you tire of this, their salads are worth a trip in themselves. Portions are copious here. Enter hungry, exit rejoicing while perhaps believing that you ate in what once was a medieval bank (it probably was).

Imagine having a swell glass of wine (their list is beyond foolproof) in a narrow, highly vaulted hall. The space may date to the 16th century, but some experts would argue it’s earlier. No matter. Their plates of affettati misti (mixed cold cuts with trimmings) are divine. As are their lunches.