Where you eat well
Towns where somebody put their name to a table
Italy has a reputation for feeding people well and it mostly deserves it, but the reputation is not evenly spread and the good places are not always where the road signs point. Everything in this section is drawn from a designation somebody else awarded and we recorded: a guide that named a restaurant, a production zone drawn in law, a festival a town has held for long enough that the date is fixed. We did not decide any of it, which is the point. You can check each one against the town page underneath it.
Pick a shelf
Towns that eat wellA national or international dining guide has named a table here.129 pieces
Towns with a serious restaurantThe most demanding of the guides lists somewhere in the commune.71 pieces
Olive oil townsMembers of the national association of olive-oil towns, the Città dell'Olio.34 pieces
Towns inside a protected oil zoneInside a DOP or IGP olive-oil zone under EU law: the oil made here carries the name.8 pieces
Wine townsMembers of the national association of wine towns, the Città del Vino.29 pieces
Towns inside a protected wine zoneInside a DOC, DOCG or IGT wine zone under EU law: the wine made here carries the name.14 pieces
Towns with a food festivalA recurring sagra built around one local ingredient.35 pieces
Towns known for one productInside the production zone of a protected cheese, cured meat, fruit, vegetable or truffle.39 pieces
Everything in this room
The best hidden coastal towns that eat well in PugliaPuglia's coast runs from the limestone cliffs of the Gargano to the low dunes of the Salento, and the towns along it eat well: raw prawns, sea urchins in spring, orecchiette with turnip tops, almond biscuits from the bakery next to the church. These are the smaller seaside towns where a dining guide has named a table worth sitting down at.
The 8 best hidden beach towns with a food festival in LiguriaAlong the Ligurian coast, clean bathing water and a summer calendar of one-ingredient food festivals meet in the same small towns: anchovies fried on the quay, focaccia col formaggio pulled hot from the oven, basil pounded in marble mortars. These are the smaller beach towns where both things are true.
The 6 best beach towns with a serious restaurant in CampaniaAlong the Campanian coast, clean bathing water and a kitchen worth booking often turn up in the same small town, from the anchovy boats of the Cilento to the lemon terraces above the Bay of Naples. These are the seaside places where lunch is the reason to stay.
The best small beach towns that eat well in LiguriaSmall stretches of Ligurian coast where the bathing water is clean enough to hold the national award and a dining guide has picked out a table in town: anchovies under salt, trofie with pesto, sea urchins in spring, and houses painted ochre and rose above the shingle.
The best wine towns within 90 minutes of MilanVineyard country begins closer to Milan than most visitors expect, in the Oltrepò Pavese hills, the high Novara slopes and the Monferrato ridges, where Nebbiolo, Cortese and Barbera are poured in cellars a short drive from the city. These are the wine towns to head for, each inside the zone of a protected wine.
The best towns known for what they grow within 75 minutes of RomeNorth of Rome the volcanic soil of the Cimini hills grows hazelnuts, chestnuts and the pale Viterbese bean, and the towns that hold the protected growing zones sit within a short drive of the city. Tuff-built villages, autumn markets and lakes ringed by orchards.
The best towns known for what they grow within two hours of MilanBetween the Po plain and the first Alpine valleys, the country within reach of Milan grows melons, Val di Susa apples, Garda olives, Nebbiolo grapes and rice, and these towns sit inside the protected zones that produce them.
The best towns known for what they grow within 45 minutes of BolognaThe plain between Bologna and Modena grows cherries, pears and the grapes that go into balsamic vinegar, and the towns along the via Emilia and the first hills behind it are where the crops are named, protected and eaten in season. Fruit, acetaie and Lambrusco within a short drive of the city.
The best towns known for what they grow within two hours of FlorenceCherries from Vignola, Garfagnana chestnut flour, moretto artichokes, traditional balsamic aged in Spilamberto attics: within a couple of hours of Florence sit towns whose names belong to a crop before they belong to a monument. Each one falls inside the production zone of a protected fruit or vegetable.
The best wine towns within 90 minutes of FlorenceWine towns an easy drive from Florence, where the vineyards sit inside protected production zones and the cellars are attached to the houses that own them. Sangiovese hills, Vernaccia, Vin Santo and the stone villages that make them.
The best wine towns within 90 minutes of NaplesInland from Naples the ground turns volcanic and cool, and the hills of Irpinia and the Sannio grow Aglianico, Greco and Falanghina in villages built of grey tufo stone. Wine towns within easy driving distance of the city, where the cellars are working buildings rather than visitor attractions.
The best towns known for what they grow within an hour of NaplesLemon terraces above the Amalfi water, tomatoes grown on volcanic ash below Vesuvius, hazelnuts and walnuts on the Nolano plain: the countryside within an hour of Naples is a production zone with legal boundaries, and the towns inside those boundaries eat accordingly.
The best wine towns within 75 minutes of VeniceNorth of Venice the plain lifts into the vine-covered hills of the Prosecco country, where steep terraces, Glera grapes and villages of pale stone and stucco sit under the Belluno pre-Alps. Wine towns close enough to reach for lunch, with cellars, hillside abbeys and radicchio and sopressa on the table.
The best towns known for what they grow within 90 minutes of VeniceThe plains and hills behind Venice grow food with a name and a boundary: red radicchio, white asparagus, cherries from the Marostica slopes, garlic from the Po delta sands. These towns sit inside those protected production zones, most of them reachable from the lagoon in an easy morning.
The best towns known for their meat within two hours of NaplesInland from Naples, past the buffalo plains and up into the Matese, the cooking turns to meat: podolica beef, mountain lamb, pork cured in cold stone cellars. These towns sit inside the production zones of protected meats, and eat accordingly.
The best towns known for their meat within two hours of GenoaInland from the Ligurian coast, the valleys behind Savona and Imperia raise cattle and cure pork inside protected production zones, and their butchers, mountain trattorie and stone villages sit within a couple of hours of Genoa. Slow-cooked beef, salame, chestnut woods and autumn markets.
The best wine towns within an hour of TurinNebbiolo, Barbera and Erbaluce grow within an hour's drive of Turin, on hills of pale marl where the villages are built of brick and stone and the autumn smells of fermenting must and white truffle.
The best wine towns within 90 minutes of GenoaInland from Genoa the motorway climbs out of the Ligurian hills into the vineyards of southern Piedmont, where Cortese, Barbera and Dolcetto grapes grow on pale marl slopes and the towns are built of sandstone and brick. Wine zones, thermal water and agnolotti, all within easy reach of the port.
The best towns known for their meat within two hours of TurinInland from Turin, the meat is the point: braised beef, raw sausage eaten with a fork, salami hung in cellars cut into hillside rock. These towns sit inside the production zones of protected Italian meats, in the Ligurian back valleys and the hills below the Biellese Alps.
The best towns known for what they grow within an hour of VeronaChestnut woods above Lake Garda, white asparagus in the Po lowlands, prosciutto cured in the Montagnana air and cherries from the Valpolicella hills: the land within an hour of Verona is organised around what it grows, and each of these towns sits inside the production zone of a protected fruit or vegetable.
The best towns that cure their own meat within two hours of VeronaWest and south of Verona, the Po plain and the first Apennine slopes cure ham, salami and culatello in cellars where fog does half the work. These are the towns inside the protected production zones, where the meat is made rather than merely served.
The best towns known for what they grow within two hours of TrentoChestnuts on Monte Baldo, white asparagus on the Veneto plain, cherries above Verona and Prosecco on the hills behind Treviso: towns within reach of Trento where a protected crop still sets the calendar, the menus and the spring festivals.
The best wine towns within 75 minutes of TrentoSouth of Trento the road drops out of the mountains into vine country: Bardolino's light red on the eastern shore of Lake Garda, Valpolicella's ripasso in the hills behind, olive oil, lake fish and moraine gravel underfoot. These are the wine towns close enough to Trento for a morning drive, each one inside the production zone of a protected wine.
The best wine towns within two hours of BolzanoSouth of the Alto Adige passes, the road drops into vine country: Bardolino's light reds on the eastern shore of Lake Garda, Valpolicella's terraced hillsides drying grapes for Amarone, and towns of pale limestone where the cellar door opens onto the piazza. Wine towns inside protected production zones, all within a couple of hours of Bolzano.
The best towns that eat well within an hour of PaduaThe plain between the Euganean Hills and the lagoon eats radicchio, bigoli, lagoon fish and Amarone braises, and the towns within an hour of Padua hold tables that guide editors have put their names to. From Asolo's hill terraces to the fish counters of Chioggia, this is where the Veneto goes to lunch.
The best wine towns within 90 minutes of PaduaWithin an easy drive of Padua the Veneto turns into vineyard country: Prosecco hills north of Treviso, Valpolicella terraces above Verona, and the Bardolino shore of Lake Garda. These are the smaller towns inside those protected production zones, where the cellars are working buildings rather than showrooms.
The best towns that cure their own meat within two hours of PaduaProsciutto salted and hung in the plain around Montagnana, salami and mortadella in the Emilian foothills, eel cured over the lagoon at Comacchio: a run of towns in easy reach of Padua where a protected cured meat is still made inside the town's own production zone.
The best towns known for what they grow within 75 minutes of PaduaThe plain between Padua and the Venetian foothills grows food with a postcode: red radicchio, white asparagus, cherries from the volcanic hills and Marostica's protected cherry orchards. These are the towns where the crop is the reason to come, and where the harvest sets the calendar.
The best towns known for what they grow within 90 minutes of BresciaBetween the moraine hills of Lake Garda and the flat Po plain, the countryside east of Brescia is organised around single crops: chestnuts on the mountain terraces, pumpkin in the Mantuan fields, cherries and olives on the Valpolicella slopes, and tortellini rolled thin enough to read through. These are towns where the harvest sets the calendar.
The best towns that cure their own meat within two hours of BresciaSalame di Varzi in the Oltrepò hills, culatello aged in Po valley fog, prosciutto cured on the Berici slopes: the plain between Brescia and the Apennine foothills has been salting pork for centuries, and these towns sit inside the protected zones where it still happens.
The best wine towns within an hour of BresciaBetween the moraine hills of Lake Garda's southern shore and the vineyards above Lake Iseo, wine is a matter of local geography: Bardolino's light reds, the white Custoza grown on gravel banks near the Mincio, the bottle-fermented sparkling wine of Franciacorta. These towns all sit inside a protected production zone, and each one drinks what grows on its own slopes.
The best towns that eat well within 75 minutes of ParmaBetween the Po and the first Apennine ridges, the country around Parma runs on culatello, tortelli d'erbetta, Lambrusco poured cold and pumpkin filled pasta. These are the towns within easy driving distance where a guide has put its name to a table.
The best olive oil towns within two hours of ParmaDrive south from Parma over the Cisa pass and the land turns to terraced olive groves, chestnut woods and stone villages of the Lunigiana, where the oil is pressed within the boundaries of a protected denomination. Towns worth a detour for the November harvest, the mills and the sandstone hill villages above them.
The best towns that cure their own meat within two hours of ParmaSalami cellars in the Apennine foothills, culatello ageing in the fog of the Po plain, lardo cut cold in the marble hills above the Tyrrhenian: the towns within reach of Parma where the cured meat is made where you eat it. Each one sits inside the production zone of a protected salume.
The best towns known for what they grow within 75 minutes of ParmaCherries, pumpkins, black-skinned Trebbiano vines and the slow barrels of traditional balsamic vinegar: the Po plain and the first Modenese hills around Parma grow food with legal borders drawn round it, and these towns sit inside those borders.
The best wine towns within 75 minutes of RiminiInland from Rimini the Romagna hills rise into Sangiovese and Albana country, a run of brick and sandstone towns with terraced vineyards, piadina stands and cellars cut into the hillside. Each of these places sits inside the production zone of a protected wine, and all are within easy driving distance of the coast.
The best towns known for what they grow within an hour of RiminiInland from Rimini the Romagna plain runs into low hills planted with peaches, apricots, nectarines, shallots and vines, and the towns along that line all sit inside the production zone of a protected fruit or vegetable. Brick campanili, piadina stands, roadside fruit crates in July.
The best wine towns within two hours of PisaSangiovese country begins within an easy drive of Pisa, from the galestro hills of Chianti to the coastal vineyards of the Maremma, where cellars sit under stone towers and the harvest runs from late summer into October.
The best towns known for what they grow within two hours of PisaNorth of Pisa, in the Lunigiana and the Garfagnana, whole towns are still known for one crop: sweetcorn ground into pale flour, chestnuts dried in stone huts, spelt sown on terraces above the Serchio. These are the hill towns inside those protected growing zones, reachable in a morning's drive.
The best olive oil towns within 90 minutes of PisaNorth of Pisa, the Apuan foothills and the Lunigiana valleys press an olive oil that is green, peppery and thin on the tongue, made in stone villages between chestnut woods and marble quarries. Late autumn is the season, when the mills run and the new oil goes onto grilled bread.
The best olive oil towns within 90 minutes of AnconaBetween the Gran Sasso and the Adriatic, the hills of the Teramo side of Abruzzo press an olive oil with a green, peppery bite, and the towns inside its protected zone sit within easy driving distance of Ancona.
The best cheese towns within two hours of PerugiaPecorino aged in tufa cellars, ricotta salata from mountain flocks, caciotta sold from the back of a van on market morning: the uplands and lake country around Perugia sit inside the production zones of Italy's protected sheep's cheeses. These are the towns where the dairies still work.
The best towns known for what they grow within 90 minutes of PerugiaUmbrian hill towns where the surrounding land is the point: black celery, lentils grown on high plateaux, farro, black truffles from the Nera valley, and olive groves running to the ridge lines. Stone villages within easy driving distance of Perugia, each inside the production zone of a protected crop.
The best towns known for what they grow within two hours of AnconaInland from the Adriatic, within a couple of hours of Ancona, lie towns whose names sit on protected labels: lentils grown in high mountain basins, onions from river gravel, shallots, potatoes, table fruit from the Romagna plain. Brick, tufa and river stone, and markets that still follow the harvest.
The best olive oil towns within two hours of SalernoInland from Salerno, in the hills of Irpinia and the far north of Campania, olive groves climb behind stone villages that press their own protected oil each autumn. These are towns where the harvest still sets the calendar, and where the mill is a short walk from the piazza.
The best cheese towns within 90 minutes of SalernoProvolone del Monaco ageing in tufa cellars above the Sorrentine peninsula, caciocavallo hung in the beech woods of the Lucanian Apennines, buffalo mozzarella eaten the morning it is made. These are the towns inside the production zones, within an easy drive of Salerno.
The best towns known for what they grow within 45 minutes of SalernoLemon terraces above the Amalfi coast, San Marzano tomato fields on the volcanic plain, anchovies cured in Cetara and hazelnut groves around Nola: the country close to Salerno is defined by what it grows, and much of it carries protected status.
The best wine towns within two hours of AnconaVerdicchio, Sagrantino and Sangiovese country within easy reach of Ancona, where hill towns of pale stone and brick sit inside protected production zones and the vendemmia runs from late summer into autumn. Cellar doors, rabbit in porchetta, tables with a view of the Adriatic or the Apennines.
The best wine towns within two hours of BariPrimitivo, Aglianico and the pale coastal whites of northern Puglia and inland Basilicata, all grown within a couple of hours' drive of Bari, in towns built from tufa and local limestone where the vineyards start where the houses stop.
The best towns that eat well within two hours of PalermoWestern Sicily eats extremely well beyond the capital: Nebrodi pork and manna from the ash trees, Marsala in the barrel, sea urchin and couscous on the Trapani side, and mountain towns of pale limestone where the pasta is still rolled by hand. These are the towns within a couple of hours of Palermo where a guide has put its name to a table.
The best towns known for what they grow within 75 minutes of BariInland from Bari, the Murgia plateau grows what southern Italian cooking runs on: table grapes, clementines, artichokes, lentils, durum wheat and the almonds that go into the region's baking. These are the towns of tufa walls and protected produce, best in the vegetable months between autumn and late spring.
The best cheese towns within 45 minutes of BariInland from Bari the limestone plateau of the Murgia turns milk into burrata, mozzarella, ricotta forte and hard caciocavallo, and the towns in its production zones still sell it warm from the morning batch. Cheese counters, olive oil, tufa-built centres and the Adriatic within easy reach.
The best cheese towns within two hours of LecceThe Murgia and the Valle d'Itria between Lecce and Bari make burrata, mozzarella, ricotta forte and hard sheep's cheeses inside protected production zones, sold from dairies that open early and sell out. These towns, all within a couple of hours' drive of Lecce, sit inside those zones.
The best cheese towns within two hours of CataniaInland from Catania, the pastures of the Iblei plateau and the hills around Enna produce Ragusano, Piacentinu Ennese and Vastedda-style sheep's cheeses, sold in dairies and market stalls in towns built from honey-coloured limestone. A slow drive through the cheese country of south-eastern Sicily, where lunch runs long and the baroque comes free with it.
The best towns known for what they grow within 45 minutes of CataniaOn Etna's eastern flank the volcanic soil grows blood oranges, prickly pears, cherries and pistachios, all of them protected by name, and the towns inside those production zones sit within easy reach of Catania.
The best towns that eat well within 75 minutes of TriesteThe eastern edge of Friuli Venezia Giulia eats like nowhere else in Italy: prosciutto from San Daniele, boiled pork in a Trieste buffet, lagoon fish grilled over vine cuttings, and white wines from the Collio hills poured in stone-floored osterie. These towns, all within easy reach of the Adriatic and the Slovenian border, hold tables that a guide has put its name to.
The best olive oil towns within 45 minutes of CataniaOn the black volcanic soil east of Etna, olive groves run down towards the Ionian between vineyards and citrus, and the oil pressed here is peppery, grassy and bottled under a protected name. Towns from the lava terraces to the fishing harbours all sit inside that production zone.
The best wine towns in AbruzzoAbruzzo makes more wine than almost any other Italian region and gets a fraction of the attention Tuscany does. These are the small towns the Montepulciano and Trebbiano actually come from.
The best small towns in Lazio for dinnerEveryone eats in Rome. These are the small towns in the rest of Lazio holding a restaurant a MICHELIN inspector put its name to, most of them within an easy drive of the city.
The best towns with a serious restaurant in the province of VeronaSmall towns on the Veronese shore of Lake Garda and in the hills of Valpolicella, each holding a restaurant listed by the most demanding of the dining guides. Lake fish, Amarone and olive oil, well away from the city tables.