15 Best Restaurants in Luxembourg

The scruffy street on which Como sits might not conjure the kind of memories you can expect to make inside this fine Italian eatery, but therein lies the surprise. Chef Renato Favaro dives into his Lombardy roots with dishes of osso buco, buckwheat tagliatelle-style pizzoccheri, and polenta with wild shrimp—all culinary staples of Northern Italy. 

Dark, cozy, and casual, this 1683 inn serves simple brasserie fare—schnitzels, cordon bleu, fondue—and a wide selection of grilled meats cooked in full view of the dining area over a sizzling wood fire. If you've given up on pork chops, this is the place to get reacquainted. The nine rooms upstairs are rustically furnished and tidy, and make for a good-value place to bed down if you're staying the night. 

This Italian pizzeria attracts an upscale, downtown set as much for its location in the historic center and its slick peach-and-brass decor as for its food, which is straightforward and reasonably priced. Wood-fired pizza and classic pastas are dependable choices. Reserve a seat in the tranquil courtyard, especially for lunch when this is a haunt for members of parliament.

This well-regarded Spanish restaurant, up in the parkland hills of the Gaalgebierg, makes quite the impression. Inside, its wavy walls and blazing fire set a modern tone that the menu picks up and runs with in its focus on refined tapas and tasting menus that veer from foie gras and quince to falafel and crispy noodles. 

As you might expect from a city 300 km (186 miles) from the nearest coastline, Luxembourg isn’t known for its seafood. Yet this friendly brasserie on place Guillaume II bucks the trend. Its location and sprawling terrace might resemble the usual tourist hustlers, but it’s a favorite with locals for good reason. The seafood comes direct from Paris’s famed Rungi market, and it's not cheap. Regulars love it for the lobster and—rather surprisingly—beef carpaccio, which comes served 10 different ways. It also just never seems to close, which makes it a handy standby. 

This Parisian-style café in the heart of the Place d'Armes serves French favorites, from onion soup to paté to pastries. The tuxedoed wait staff is friendly whether you order an elaborate three-course meal or linger over a cup of coffee. Sit outside and watch the pedestrian parade through the square.

Located at the top of the hill overlooking town and the river below, this inn is surrounded by a seasonal garden. Although the river view is somewhat obscured, bright windows and handsome furniture all create a welcoming environment. This restaurant is known across the country for its fine French cuisine. The inn rents spacious rooms and the pension plans combining room and board are an appealing option.

Across the street from the train station, this lively establishment with vinyl booths draws a loyal local crowd. Many come for vast portions of mussels in a rich wine-and-garlic broth (available September through March), accompanied by frites and a bottle of sharp, cold, inexpensive Auxerrois or Rivaner.

French cuisine with a seasonal bias and a gift for flair. Dishes arrive like tiny works of art, painted with the broad strokes of classical French cooking. Everything here is nicely presented, including the interior. 

The restaurant of the Hotel du Commerce has had a revamp in recent years, but remains an eminently reliable spot for a bit of brasserie fare, with a menu steeped in the French classics and the odd Luxembourgish aside. Think Bouchée à la Reine (creamy chicken-stuffed vol-au-vents) and the usual array of steaks, cordon bleus, and carpaccios, all pulled off with no little flair. 

Its name (“Friends First”) quotes a popular 1960s song by French chanteur George Brassens. It's a coziness replicated on a warm hug of a menu that fixes its ambitions on burgers and the comfier corners of French cuisine. The "Bavard," a fillet of beef done a dozen ways is the specialty, but the cordon bleu (cheese-and-ham stuffed chicken) is not to be missed: smothered in a creamy mushroom sauce, it's like a comfy blanket in food form. Stick to the brasserie-style fare and you’ll find delights for a decent price. 

This was the first meat-free restaurant in Luxembourg back in 1990. Today, its vegetarian, vegan, and seafood menu typically piles on myriad flavors (some more successfully than others) as tofu, seitan, spring rolls, veggies, samosas, rice, vol-au-vents, and creamy Thai curry sauces spill across the plate. On the whole, it's a winner, with colorful murals and a candlelit interior accompanying live music on some nights. 

A serene refuge near the busy train station, this quaint neighborhood spot is hidden on an easily missed side street. The menu changes every few months, but always includes fresh seasonal ingredients, including beef, pork, and lamb, all prepared in simple country style. The 20-table dining area is decorated with rattan furniture and soothing original art.

History courses through the menu here. The first Italian restaurant to open in Luxembourg (back in 1950) is still arguably the best loved in the city. Black-and-white stills of old Italy evoke an elegiac tone, and, in truth, there’s little revolutionary here: just the classics done well, and often. Handmade pastas, bold truffle flavors, and a great choice of grappas and Italian wines accompany a menu that is heavily seasonal. Just embrace what the months bring. 

A number of eateries here skewer that middle ground between bar and restaurant; this does it better than most. Chic, cozy, and with one of the more packed terraces in the city, Um Plateau sits aside from the rest of the Grund. The à la carte menu may slip all too snugly into standard brasserie fare, but the reason it’s the hosting spot du jour for locals is the tapas-like small dishes (think: wagyu sliders, shrimp popcorn, and foie gras). That the kitchen serves until the small hours only solidifies its standing on the cool late-night dining circuit.