Towns that eat well
A national or international dining guide has named a table here.
129 lists
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 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 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 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 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 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 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 that eat well in the province of MacerataInland Macerata is Marche cooking at its most confident: vincisgrassi baked in brick ovens, hand-rolled maccheroncini, ciauscolo salami and Verdicchio poured in hill towns built from pale local stone. These are the towns in the province where a national or international dining guide has named a table.
The best towns that eat well in the province of IserniaUpland Molise cooking in the province of Isernia: sheep's cheese and caciocavallo, wild mountain greens, black truffles, lamb cooked over wood, and tables that national dining guides have singled out in towns most travellers drive past.
The best towns that eat well in the province of LatinaGuide-recognised kitchens along the southern Lazio coast, from the tiella bakeries of Gaeta to the lentil and fish cooking of the Pontine islands. Where to eat well in the province of Latina, town by town.
The best towns that eat well in the province of L'AquilaTowns in the province of L'Aquila where a national or international dining guide has named a table, from the saffron fields around the Navelli plain to the mutton grills of the high Altopiano delle Cinque Miglia.
The best towns that eat well in the province of ViterboTowns in the province of Viterbo where a national or international dining guide has named a table, from lake fish at Capodimonte to the tufa kitchens of Calcata and the Etruscan plain at Tarquinia.
The best towns that eat well in the province of Valle d'Aosta/Vallée d'AosteGuide-named tables in the smaller communes of the Valle d'Aosta, from Ayas and Cogne to Bard and Fénis: fontina, black bread, mountain beef and Alpine wine lists, in towns where the dining room is usually attached to the village.
The best hidden towns that eat well in the province of SavonaSmall towns in the province of Savona where a national or international dining guide has named a table, from the olive terraces of the Val Merula to the stockfish and chickpea kitchens behind the beach.
The 8 best hidden towns that eat well in the province of BresciaSmall towns on the Brescia shore of Lake Garda and around Lake Iseo where a national or international dining guide has named a table, from lake fish and olive oil to Franciacorta and the trout of the upper valleys.
The 6 best small towns that eat well in the province of PerugiaSix small towns in the province of Perugia where a national or international dining guide has named a table: Umbrian lentils, black truffle, wood-fired pigeon and pork cured the way the hill villages have always cured it.
The best small towns that eat well in the province of TrentoSmall towns in the province of Trento where a national or international dining guide has named a table, from the Val di Fiemme and Val di Fassa up to the valleys under the Brenta and Presanella. Larch, stone and mountain cooking, without the queues of the main resorts.
The 6 best small towns that eat well in the province of L'AquilaSix small towns in the province of L'Aquila where a national or international dining guide has named a table, from the sheep-farming high plains around Roccaraso and Rivisondoli to the stone streets of Pacentro, Pescocostanzo, Ovindoli and Scanno.
The best hidden towns that eat well in SardegnaSardinian towns where a national or international dining guide has named a table, from the granite hills of the Barbagia to the Tunisian-inflected kitchens of the south-west. Inland shepherds' cooking, Vermentino, Cannonau and coastal towns where the restaurants stay open for locals.
The best hidden towns that eat well in CalabriaTen smaller Calabrian towns, from the Pollino foothills to the Tyrrhenian cliffs, where a national or international dining guide has named a table worth sitting down at. Red onion, swordfish, nduja, Sila mushrooms and truffle ice cream.
The best small towns that eat well in UmbriaSmall Umbrian towns where a national or international dining guide has named a table: cured pork and black truffle in the Valnerina, farro soups, lentils from the high plains, and hill villages built from pale limestone.
The best small towns that eat well in MarcheNine small Marche towns where a national or international dining guide has named a table, from truffle country around Acqualagna to the brick hill towns above the Adriatic and the cliff villages of the Conero.
The 7 best small towns that eat well in VenetoSmall Veneto towns where a national or international dining guide has named a table, from the olive terraces above Lake Garda to the Prosecco hills and the Dolomite valleys of Cadore.
The best small towns that eat well in Emilia-RomagnaSmall towns across Emilia-Romagna, from the Piacenza hills to the Apennine ridges above Modena and the Montefeltro, where a guide-listed kitchen sits inside a village of stone houses and a single main street.
The 6 best towns that eat well in the province of AnconaVerdicchio from the hills behind Jesi, brodetto on the Adriatic, and stoccafisso all'anconetana inland: the province of Ancona eats across two landscapes, coast and limestone hill, and guidebook-rated tables sit in towns of only a few thousand people.
The best towns that eat well in the province of LecceIn the Salento's flat interior and along its low limestone coast, kitchens still run on ciceri e tria, sagne 'ncannulate, horse meat in tomato and the morning pasticciotto, with dining guides picking out a table in each of these towns.
The best towns that eat well in the province of PotenzaIn the mountains and river valleys of inland Basilicata, guide-listed kitchens work with Sarconi beans, Rotonda red aubergines, lucanica sausage and podolica beef, and the cooking gets better as the roads get smaller. A route through the province of Potenza for eating.
The best towns that eat well in the province of SondrioValtellina eats buckwheat: pizzoccheri under melted Casera, bresaola cut fine, sciatt fried in butter, all of it drunk with Nebbiolo grown on terraced walls above the Adda. The province of Sondrio holds tables named by national and international dining guides, from the crotti of Chiavenna to the high kitchens of the upper valley.
The best towns that eat well in the province of CosenzaInland Cosenza cooks with pork, chilli, Sila potatoes and pecorino crotonese, while the Tyrrhenian side works anchovies and swordfish. These are the towns in the province where a national or international dining guide has named a table.
The best towns that eat well in the province of FoggiaFoggia's kitchens run from the wheat plain of the Tavoliere up into the limestone of the Gargano: paposcia baked in wood ovens, caciocavallo from podolica cattle, lamb, almonds, and the heavy reds of San Severo. These are towns in the province where a national or international dining guide has named a table.
The best towns that eat well in the province of UdineFriuli eats differently from the rest of Italy: smoked ham cured in mountain air, cheese aged in cellars, lagoon fish grilled plain, frico crisped in a pan. In the province of Udine, guide-listed kitchens sit in small towns as often as in the city.
The best hidden towns that eat well in the province of GenovaThe province of Genova eats better than its reputation suggests, from focaccia col formaggio pulled hot from the oven on the Golfo Paradiso to basil pesto ground in the hills behind the coast. These are the smaller towns along that shore and up its valleys where a national or international dining guide has named a table.
The 8 best coastal towns that eat well in CalabriaCalabrian seafront towns where swordfish, nduja, Tropea onions and tartare of red prawn arrive within sight of the water, each with a table a dining guide has picked out. Ionian and Tyrrhenian coast, best from late spring to the end of September.
The best hidden hill towns that eat well in the province of ViterboInland from Lake Bolsena and the Via Cassia, the hill towns of the Viterbese are built from grey-black volcanic tufo and cook accordingly: chestnuts, hazelnuts, lentils, wild boar, pecorino and the flat bread they still bake for the acquacotta. Each of these towns has a table named by a national dining guide.
The best olive oil towns that eat well in the province of PerugiaOn the hills between the Martani ridge and the Umbrian valley, olive groves run right up to the walls of towns built in pink and grey stone, and the new oil is pressed while the frost is still on the nets. These are places where a dining guide has named a table and the oil on it comes from the slope below.
The 7 best towns inside a national park that eat well in PugliaPuglia's national parks cover limestone gorges, Aleppo pine forest and the high stone plateau of the Murgia, and the towns inside them cook accordingly: lamb, wild greens, sea urchins, burrata and orecchiette rolled by hand. These are the parks' towns where a dining guide has singled out a table.
The best towns inside a nature park that eat well in the province of NapoliVolcanic tuff, lemon terraces and the Monti Lattari ridge give the province of Napoli two very different protected landscapes, and the tables inside them cook accordingly: fried fish and Falanghina above the Campi Flegrei craters, provolone del monaco and pasta with walnuts on the Sorrentine hills.
The best towns you can reach by train that eat well in the province of GenovaThe Ligurian coast east of Genova runs on a single railway line, past focaccia col formaggio, anchovies under salt and slate-fronted houses stacked above small harbours. These are the towns along it where the trains stop and a dining guide has named a table.
The best wine towns that eat well in CampaniaCampania's wine country runs from the Falanghina slopes of the Sannio to terraced vines above the Amalfi coast, and these towns pair the bottle with a kitchen a dining guide has singled out. Aglianico, buffalo mozzarella, wood-fired pizza and lemon groves, in places built of volcanic tuff and sea-facing stone.
The best towns on a walking route that eat well in the province of PerugiaThe province of Perugia carries the old pilgrim paths across olive terraces and limestone ridges, and the towns strung along them keep guide-listed kitchens serving lentils, wild fennel sausage, black truffle and strangozzi in oil. Walking stages with a table worth the descent at the end.
The best coastal towns that eat well in SardegnaSardinian coast towns where the kitchens are worth the drive: bottarga from the lagoons at Oristano, Catalan lobster in Alghero, Ligurian-Tunisian tuna cooking on San Pietro, and guide-listed tables in each of them, all within sight of the water.
The best olive oil towns that eat well in LiguriaLigurian olive oil comes from the taggiasca, a small dark olive grown on dry stone terraces above the sea, and the towns that press it also know how to cook with it. These are the places inland and along the coast where the oil is local, the mills still run in winter, and a dining guide has named a table worth booking.
The prettiest villages that eat well in AbruzzoStone villages on the flanks of the Maiella and the Gran Sasso, where the kitchens still turn out maccheroni alla chitarra, mutton cooked slowly with peppers, and pecorino aged in the mountain air. Each of these Abruzzo villages has passed the national assessment of Italy's most beautiful borghi, and each has a table named by a dining guide.
The best towns inside a nature park that eat well in Emilia-RomagnaEmilia-Romagna's regional nature parks run from the Apennine ridge down to the pine woods and salt pans of the Adriatic, and the towns inside them keep tables a dining guide has singled out. Sandstone hill villages, chestnut woods, salt-cured pork and pasta rolled by hand.
The best towns worth staying overnight that eat well in PugliaPuglia eats late and cooks simply: burrata from the Murgia dairies, capocollo from the Valle d'Itria, orecchiette with cime di rapa, sea urchins split on the harbour wall. These are the Puglian towns where a guide-rated hotel and a guide-named kitchen sit within walking distance of each other.
The best hidden towns you can reach by train that eat well in the province of PerugiaUmbrian towns in the province of Perugia that sit on a working railway line and still keep a kitchen worth the trip, from lake fish at Trasimeno to olive oil pressed on the slopes below Trevi.
The best ski towns that eat well in the province of Bolzano/BozenSouth Tyrol skis in German and eats in two languages at once: canederli and speck in the mountain huts, a tasting menu and a Lagrein back down in the valley. These are the towns in the province of Bolzano/Bozen where the lifts and the good tables share a postcode.
The 6 best towns on a walking route that eat well in the province of SienaWalking stages of the Via Francigena through the province of Siena, where the day ends in a town with a dining room worth the descent: pici with garlic, pecorino from the Val d'Orcia, Brunello and Vernaccia poured by the glass.
The 6 best hill towns that eat well in CampaniaInland Campania cooks differently from the coast: buffalo mozzarella from the Volturno plain, Aglianico from volcanic slopes, wood-fired pizza judged by people who have eaten it all their lives. These hill towns sit above the tuff valleys, and a dining guide has named a table in each.
The prettiest villages that eat well in CampaniaCampania's inland hills and Amalfi cliffsides hold small villages judged among Italy's most beautiful, and in each one a dining guide has singled out a table worth sitting down at, from Irpinian Aglianico country to the lemon terraces above the sea.
The best hidden olive oil towns that eat well in UmbriaUmbrian hill towns built of pale limestone and pink Subasio stone, ringed by silver olive terraces that give a green, peppery oil pressed in late autumn, and each with a dining room a national guide thinks worth the drive.
The best towns inside a nature park that eat well in LiguriaLiguria's regional nature parks run from the chestnut woods of the Val Bormida down to the pine ridges above the Golfo dei Poeti, and the towns inside them keep serious kitchens: anchovies from the gulf, pesto pounded with Pra basil, wild mushrooms and rabbit cooked with olives. These are the protected-landscape towns where a guide-listed table sits within walking distance of the trailhead.
The best towns you can reach by train that eat well in CalabriaCalabrian towns strung along the Tyrrhenian and Ionian railway lines, where swordfish, nduja and Sila mushrooms come to the table and the station is close enough to walk from. Each has a dining room a national guide has picked out, and none of them needs a hire car.
The best towns with a World Heritage site that eat well in VenetoVeneto's World Heritage landscape runs from the Palladian villas of the plain to the steep Prosecco hills above Valdobbiadene, and the towns holding that status also hold kitchens a dining guide thought worth naming. Radicchio, soppressa, sopa coada and mountain cheese, eaten where the vines climb.
The best small ski towns that eat well in Trentino-Alto Adige/SüdtirolSki towns in Trentino-Alto Adige where the lift is on the town's own territory and the dinner afterwards is worth planning around: canederli and speck in the Südtirol valleys, smoked ricotta and barley soup in Trentino, larch-panelled dining rooms in villages built of stone and timber.
The best hidden coastal towns that eat well in SiciliaSicilian coast towns where the kitchens are as good as the water: tuna landed off the Egadi, capers from volcanic terraces, red prawns and pistachio, sea urchin in spring, and dining rooms that guidebooks have taken the trouble to name.
The best hill towns that eat well in Emilia-RomagnaInland from the Via Emilia, the Apennine foothills of Emilia-Romagna hold brick and sandstone villages where the tortelli are rolled by hand and the guide-listed kitchens sit under a castle wall. These are hill towns with tables worth the drive.
The best hidden olive oil towns that eat well in PugliaPuglia's olive country runs from the Gargano headlands to the Murgia plateau, with towns built from pale limestone, mills pressing new oil in late autumn, and dining rooms that cook with it rather than around it. These are the smaller places where the oil is local and a guide has still found a table worth booking.
The best towns inside a nature park that eat well in SiciliaInside Sicilia's regional nature parks, on the flanks of Etna, the Madonie and the Nebrodi, are towns where the cooking runs to manna, wild fennel, mountain pork and Nerello Mascalese, and where a dining guide has named a table worth sitting down at.
The best hidden hill towns that eat well in PugliaInland Puglia, where the limestone rises away from the sea and the cooking turns to lamb, wild greens, orecchiette and bread baked in wood ovens. These are hill towns with a table worth the drive, each one named by a dining guide.