Trattoria€€Centro StoricoDaily 12:30-14:30 and 20:00-23:00, closed Sunday evening
Trattoria Maristella serves spaghetti all'algherese near the Dante waterfront in Alghero all year round, at about €25 a head with 30 seats outside.
Order: Spaghetti all'algherese, the house plate that keeps the locals coming back.
Seafood€€Centro StoricoThu-Tue 12:00-14:00 and 19:00-22:30, closed Wednesday
Trattoria da Mirko cooks only the day's catch on Via Gioberti in Alghero, finishing with seadas in honey and a myrtle and nougat semifreddo.
Order: The mixed grill off the day's catch, then seadas with Sardinian honey.
Mediterranean€€€Centro StoricoDaily 12:30-14:30 and 19:30-23:00, closed Monday in winter
Borgo Antico sits on the small square off Via della Misericordia in Alghero and cooks monkfish alla catalana and Sardinian gnocchetti with seafood.
Order: Monkfish alla catalana, tomato and sweet onion over white fish.
Seafood€€€LidoDaily 12:30-14:30 and 19:30-22:30, closed Thursday and all of November
Rafel sits on the sand at Lido San Giovanni in Alghero and cooks spaghetti ai ricci, lobster alla catalana and a fish soup worth the two-kilometre walk.
Order: Spaghetti ai ricci when the sea urchin season is open, lobster alla catalana when it is not.
Catalan€€Maria PiaDaily 12:30-15:00 and 19:30-24:00, closed Tuesday in March, April and October to December
La Pergola has served Algherese paella at Maria Pia since 1976, and runs a full gluten-free service in Alghero for around €25 a head without wine.
Order: Algherese paella, the plate this Maria Pia dining room has built since 1976.
Catalan€€Centro StoricoMon and Thu-Sun 13:00-14:00 and 20:00-22:00, Wed 20:00-22:00, closed Tuesday
Alamo on Via Ambrogio Machin in Alghero builds its paella from 21 ingredients, then finishes with crema catalana under a burnt sugar lid. TableJourney pick.
Order: The paella, built from 21 ingredients and worth the wait it takes.