16 Best Restaurants in The Veneto and Friuli–Venezia Giulia, Italy

This bustling café-bar is famed for its excellent creamy coffee and freshly made brioche—it's cheek by jowl al banco (at the counter/bar), with Veronese patrons spilling outside. The narrow space with star-vaulted ceiling on the charming Corso Borsari cobbles is packed with coffee- and tea-making pots and cups, as are its walls with colorful gifts and oddities according to the time of year.

Under the porticoes of gorgeous Piazza Matteoti, with its vibrant student and dialect-speaking locals, Grosmi is a reliable choice for excellent coffee, pastries, and people-watching. Although the brioche filled with chocolate, custard, or fruit jam are staples, some opt for a small cake or macaroon to accompany their caffeine fix.

Opened in 1904, this ever-reliable osteria serves hearty traditional cucina veneta in wonderfully homey, rustic surroundings. Take a seat under the dark wooden beams or in the leafy courtyard, and let the friendly staff guide you through a menu, dominated by meat dishes and seasonal soups, that has barely changed in decades. Expect the finest Slow Food–approved seasonal Veneto produce, as well as cucina povera like liver Venetian-style or egg-rich bigoli pasta with salted sardines.

Nestled under the porticoes of Piazzetta Palladio, the historic Pasticceria Sorarù occupies the former Cafeteria Palladio (1870) and is an ever-reliable spot for the freshest breakfast brioche with cappuccino, and a cornucopia of pastry delights. Inside, you can lean on the handsome old wooden counter and sample a pastry or three while admiring the glass jars filled with colorful candies. 

At this rustic, wood-rich family-style osteria, it's worth giving the robust local specialties, such as tripe, snails, or stewed game, a go—many of them served with polenta. Less adventurous diners can go for other homey options, such as goulash, polenta with cheese and mushrooms, or one of Bacaro's open-face sandwiches, generously topped with fresh salami, speck, or other cold cuts. Although the restaurant caters to tourists—as is the case with most eateries in Asolo—the food here is better than average.

Deep in the atmospheric Sotto Salone market, this busy bar does a fab selection of filled tramezzini (triangular sandwiches), panini, and other snacks. It's a great place to hear the local dialect and mingle with the market workers and shoppers any time of day; grab a breakfast coffee and brioche, a glass of Falanghina, or a bit later—after 11 am perhaps—an apertivo with snacks. Ask behind the bar or one of the locals about the various wines and snacks chalked on the board.

Serving delicious and generous portions of traditional Triestino buffet fare, such as boiled pork and sausages with savory sauerkraut, Siora Rosa is a bit more comfortable than many buffets. In addition to ample seating in the simple dining room, there are tables outside for when the weather is good. The restaurant is frequented mainly by Triestini, including students and faculty from the nearby university. You may be the only tourist in the place, but the helpful staff generally speak English.  This buffet closes for a brief time between lunch and dinner.

A Triestino institution, this is the oldest and most esteemed of the many "buffet" restaurants serving pork and sausages around town, with a wood-paneled interior and seating outside. It specializes in bollito di maiale, a dish of boiled pork and pork sausages accompanied by delicately flavored sauerkraut, mustard, and grated horseradish. Unlike other Italian restaurants, buffets don't close between lunch and dinner, and tap beer is the drink of choice. For what seems to be a "fast food" restaurant, the service is surprisingly friendly and helpful.

This mix between a traditional bacaro (wine bar) and an osteria is a local institution, opened in 1922. Stand at the bar with a cross section of Padovano society, from construction workers to professors, and peruse the reasonably priced menu of simple casalinga (home-cooked dishes), plus salads and a selection of cheeses. Portions are ample, and no one will look askance if you don't order the full meal. The place is packed with loyal regulars at lunchtime, so come early or expect a wait, and don't expect to have an intimate conversation.

Il Magazzino is a great spot to grab a snack any time of day, as this well-run, modern place covers all the bases, from coffee and brioche breakfast fixes, to brunch panini and plates of pasta or risotto with a glass of wine later. Check out their fab selection of brioche pastries with novel fruit and nutty fillings, as well as heaped salads.

Located in the heart of what used to be Padua's Jewish ghetto, this friendly trattoria serves almost exclusively traditional Veneto dishes, and it does so with refinement and care. Everything from the well-crafted dishes to the unfussy ship's dining cabin–like decor and elegant plates reflect decades of Padovano hospitality. The veal liver and onions is extraordinarily tender, and even the accompanying polenta is grilled to perfection. The desserts are nothing to scoff at, either. This tiny place fills up quickly, so reservations are a must.

This cozy 19th-century locale storico (historic hostelry) is steeped in Vicentina atmosphere, from the bar serving local wines and sopressa (premium salami) to the intimate dark-wood restaurant serving hearty classics. Grab a table out back for a sit-down meal of robust dishes like bigoli (thick, egg-enriched spaghetti) with duck, spaghetti with baccalà (cod), and, in spring, risi e bisi (rice with peas). Desserts include fruit tarts and the ubiquitous tiramisu.

Many of Vicenza's wealthier residents spend at least part of the summer in the Alps to escape the heat, and the dishes of this popular and friendly trattoria reflect the hearty  influences of neighboring Alpine areas of the Trentino and Tyrol on local cuisine. The house specialty, stinco di maiale al forno (roast pork shank), is wonderfully fragrant, with herbs and aromatic vegetables and roast potatoes. Game dishes include venison with blueberries, and guinea fowl roasted with white grapes.

Vicentini of all generations gravitate to this popular self-service cafeteria for classic dishes that don't put a dent in your wallet. Expect hearty helpings of fare such as orzo e fagioli (barley and bean soup) and baccalà alla vicentina (stockfish Vicenza style) 

Wood paneled and with a 1930s-style interior, this bustling trattoria has a wholesome menu based on local Veneto cooking. The "spin" in the restaurant's name refers to the spine of the baccalà, one of several justly famous specialties (served without the titular spine); also try the sopa coada, a pigeon-and-bread soup.  Reservations are essential, even for lunch, since the word is out that this is the best value in town.

Drop into this busy locals favorite for panini bulging with the prized porchetta Trevigiana (roast pork) or mortadella with gorgonzola amid a rustic room crammed with fragrant hanging salami, cheese wheels, wine bottles and assorted ephemera. It's a fab spot from morning to mid evening, fulfilling all quick bite and cheeky drink needs from on the hoof-snacks and picnic provisions to laid-back lunches and aperitivo sessions.