1178 Best Restaurants in Italy

What many consider the best gelateria in the centro storico embodies the "practice makes perfect" adage. It's been making ice cream since 1939.

It's possible to break the bank here, as this might be the best salumeria in Florence. Perini sells prosciutto, mixed meats, sauces for pasta, and a wide assortment of antipasti.

This fourth-generation fish shop run by brothers is also a trendy, if rough-and-ready, spot to enjoy a super-fresh but pricey seafood meal—including superb Neapolitan sushi—and cold wine while sitting on a buoy stool.

This restaurant has an open kitchen, where you can watch the talented women owners cook up a storm of inventive delights—this is a "kitchen lab," after all, where top local ingredients are whipped into delicious plates. The spaghetti with tomato sauce, smoked ricotta, parmigiano, basil, and lemon peel is one of the signature dishes, and the amped-up traditional recipe is a delicious indication of how interesting the food can get.

This chic seafood restaurant is a fun spot on balmy summer evenings, where elegant diners sip crisp white wine at tables out on the pretty Piazza de' Ricci. The carpaccio selection is exquisite, but there is also a large selection of pastas extravagantly topped with white truffles. As at most Italian restaurants, fresh fish is sold per hectogram (100 grams, or about 3.5 ounces), so you may want to double-check the cost after it's been weighed.

Just off Courmayeur’s pedestrian center, this charming restaurant with beamed ceilings and wildlife pictures on the wall is truly a family affair: Stefano Alessandro Marchetto cooks, his wife Monica hosts, and their twin sons are the sommelier and server. The cuisine leans toward modern versions of Valle d’Aosta cuisine with unexpected twists, like the risotto with mountain pine and sturgeon; while you can order à la carte, trying one of the tasting menus lets you sample the full range of their inspired offerings.

Locals swear by this small, unpretentious trattoria a couple of blocks from the beach, where the Artizzu family has been serving seafood since 1979. The house specialty aragosta alla catalana con verdure (Mediterranean lobster with steamed and raw vegetables) is pricey but divine, and the spiedino di sogliola (sole kebab) arrives with silken mashed potatoes topped with bottarga (a smoked-tuna product). If you can't decide, opt for the tasting menu, which gives you a little bit of a lot of the menu. Patrizia makes all the desserts; remember to leave room for them.

Located in Manciano, just south of Saturnia, this local institution has a circus-themed interior, and, if you can get past the creepy clown statues, you're in for a treat. Owner and pizzaiolo Antonio—who has been winning Italian pizza championships since the 1990s and who developed this eatery with Michelin-star chef Valeria Piccini—celebrates all things Maremman with pizzas like the favorite la briaca, featuring Morellino di Scansano wine–soaked pears and a locally produced blue cheese called guttus.

Named for Neapolitan character Pulcinella’s girlfriend, this restaurant is in the onetime oratory of the adjoining church, which became a sawmill in the early 20th century. The high tufo arches and period fittings have been maintained, and the pizzas and pasta dishes are first class—the owners grow much of the produce that's used on their farm in nearby Sant’Agata dei Goti.

South Tyrol native Egon Heiss uses ingredients from Castel Fragsburg’s gardens as well as produce from nearby organic farms, and meat and fish from area producers, to create his beautiful versions of hyperlocal dishes. Delicious items on Prezioso’s five-course tasting menus may include potato dumplings with Alpine cheese, Alpine salmon, and lamb from the Funes Valley—traditional cuisine elevated by modern preparations and artful presentations.

At this classy Florentine institution dating from 1885, try one of the minitruffle panini and swish it down with a glass of prosecco.

Roman Chef Davide Pulejo cut his teeth at Noma in Copenhagen as well as Michelin-starred restaurants in the Eternal City and Milan before opening his namesake restaurant, which quickly earned accolades and a Michelin star of its own. The five- and seven-course tasting menus are flavorful, sensory journeys perfectly paired with wines from small producers. His greatest hits include roasted red peppers in the guise of beef tartare, Milanese-style saffron risotto with Roman-style oxtail, and celeriac tarte tatin.

Inside this rustic osteria, where there's not an inch of wall space spared from decor, the larger-than-life Grasso Rosario holds court as he bounces from table to table offering opinions and insight on his Slow Food--focused menu. Drawing upon the abundance of the region, the menu highlights the black hog from the Nebrodi mountains, a local cultivar of kohlrabi, known as trunzu (in arancini and as a pasta), porcini mushrooms, and perfectly grilled and roasted meats (think pork knuckle, ribs, veal, and lamb). The Sicily-heavy wine list is a sommelier's dream.

Palazzolo Acreide has become a bit of a food town in recent years, and this blink-and-you-miss-it spot, housed in an ancient grotto off the main street, is a big part of that. The family-run restaurant offers house antipasti big enough to share, a short menu of high-quality entrées, and great-value tasting menus.

Locals and other cognoscenti frequent this sleek eatery just minutes away from Piazza del Duomo, where chef Gabriele Romagnoli uses prime local ingredients to create gustatory sensations on a menu that changes daily. Fish and seafood figure prominently among his dishes, such as with a gratinato (similar to a French au gratin) with seafood. There are also Ferrarese classics like cappelletti pasta. The restaurant's tasting menus are well priced, its wine list is divine, and the service, led by gregarious hands-on proprietor Mara Farinelli, is always top-notch. Two small rooms festooned with works of art have linen tablecloths and jazz playing softly in the background.

In a pretty art deco setting inside Hotel Elephant, wunderkind chef Mathias Bachmann whips up beautifully presented and creative Italian cuisine with an Asian flair in his nightly six-course tasting menus. Dishes change with the seasons, but if they're on the menu, don't miss the nori tartlet with asparagus or Hokkaido Wagyu with miso and black applesauce.

At this sleek Michelin-starred restaurant inside the Hall Tailor Suite hotel, chef/owner Riccardo Di Giacinto and his wife, Ramona, make fine dining a fun and entertaining experience. Di Giacinto worked with Ferran Adrià in Spain and uses some of his techniques without veering too far into the territory of molecular gastronomy. Instead, he playfully transforms Roman classics, keeping the flavors but changing the forms. For example, his All'Origine tasting menu features a pasta-less carbonara reduction served in an eggshell and coda alla vaccinara (oxtail stew) presented as an oversize Ferrero Rocher. The service is professional but friendly. Each meal starts and ends with an array of amuse-bouches and petit fours creatively served on vessels that might include a ceramic banana or a toy carousel.

Diners can ski or hike (or drive, if they wish) to this charming alpine cabin at the foot of Mount Cervino decorated with a whimsical mix of cowbells and modern art. Alpage specializes in typical Valle d’Aosta cuisine, such as pappardelle with deer ragù and wild boar stew with polenta, using ingredients from small producers, along with a wonderful selection of wines from both local and other Italian producers.

Low wooden ceilings and flickering candlelight make this monastery from the 10th and 11th centuries Spoleto's most romantic spot; in warm weather, you can dine under a canopy on the piazza. The kitchen serves sophisticated, innovative variations on local dishes, including long, slender strengozzi pasta with such toppings as cherry tomatoes, mint, and a touch of red pepper or (in season) porcini mushrooms or truffles.

Food lovers should not miss Arnolfo, one of Tuscany's most highly regarded restaurants, where chef Gaetano Trovato sets high standards of creativity in dishes that daringly ride the line between innovation and tradition, almost always with spectacular results. The menu changes frequently, but you are always sure to find fish and lots of fresh vegetables in the summer. Perhaps the best way to thrill at this restaurant would be to engage in one of the tasting menus.

At this informal, waterside restaurant and snack bar, you won't see many locals—they're unlikely to be impressed by the four-language menus—but the seafood platters are fresh and flavorful, and you can eat alfresco in the sunshine or inside a glass-enclosed dining area with a nautical motif. You can even go for a swim. For a special-occasion splurge, consider renting out their luxury resort next door, Villa del Maggiore, replete with pool, terraces, and direct private access to the sea.

High above the sea in one of Vernazza's remaining medieval stone towers is this unique spot serving delicious Cinque Terre cuisine such as branzino sotto sale (cooked under salt), tagliolini al nero di seppia con gamberi (fresh pasta with squid ink sauce and prawns), and polpo di scoglio alla griglia (grilled octopus). There's a good selection of vegetarian dishes, too. The setting is magnificent, so try for an outdoor table. Reservations are a must.

Highly recommended by locals, this classic restaurant can be found right in the center of Caltanissetta. Although the menu focuses on seafood dishes, including such classics as red shrimp and swordfish, there are several vegetarian options. The owner takes the time to explain the dishes, albeit in Italian, but she takes great pride in the offerings. Along with a full menu of antipasti, primi, and secondi, the restaurant also offers an ample list of regional wines.

Although this restaurant is on a tiny side street and can be easy to miss, do try to find it, as it serves fantastic food, with dishes listed on the seasonal menu under "L'Innovazione" (Innovations, usually, on classics) or "La Tradizione" (Tradition). Adventurous eaters should try such flights of fancy as bavarese di fegato, which comes adorned with pomegranate seeds and redefines chicken liver pâté.

The nondescript exterior of this buzzy eatery off one of Stresa's main streets belies its modern interior. Dishes made with seasonal ingredients dominate the menu, but, no matter the season, you'll find local lake fish, both marinated and pan-fried, as well as a solid list of wines from throughout the region and across Italy.

Dining in this bright, airy space feels like enjoying a meal in a fabulous friend’s modern lake cottage—if the friend had floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking Lake Garda and a top-notch chef on hand. For an adventure in flavors from across the country, choose from one of the tasting menus and complement your meal with Italian or international wines in four- or five-glass pairings.

Seafood classics, including tartara di pescato del giorno (raw catch-of-the-day antipasto) and linguine with riccio (sea urchin), are tweaked creatively here. The staff is warm and helpful, the singer on the sound system is the long-departed "fourth tenor" himself, and the operatic memorabilia (including posters and old photos of Caruso) and subtle lighting add to the atmosphere.

This Castelbuono institution has been preparing dishes with the finest local ingredients for over 30 years. Chefs Giuseppe and Francesca Carollo are dedicated to the products found in and around Castelbuono, including wild mushrooms, vegetables, "black" pork, and sweet manna made from the sap of local ash trees, which he fashions into beautiful, inventive dishes.  

The understated atmosphere, simple decor, and quiet elegance featured alongside Da Fiore's modern take on traditional Venetian cuisine certainly merit its international reputation. With such beautifully prepared cuisine, you would expect the kitchen to be run by a chef with a household name; however, the kitchen is headed by owner Maurizio Martin's wife, Mara, who learned to cook from her grandmother. The other surprise is that, while this restaurant is in a higher price category, it is hardly among the priciest in Venice. The menu is constantly changing, but generally fritto misto or Da Fiore's tender, aromatic version of seppie in nero (cuttlefish in ink) is almost always available. Reservations, made a few days in advance in high season, are essential for dinner, but you can try just dropping in for lunch. Da Fiore is consistently awarded a Michelin star, although—unlike many other honored restaurants—it does not publicize the fact. Do not confuse it with Trattoria da Fiore, which is in Campo Santo Stefano (San Marco).

Carrying on a tradition of top-quality cuisine started by his father, chef Paolo Gramaglia and his wife, Laila—the pastry chef and sommelier—run this Michelin-starred restaurant that marries the best of Campanian food with global culinary influences. The presentation of every dish is beautiful, and service is impeccable; what's more, the restaurant sometimes hosts themed culinary evenings.