What is in season in Alghero. and what to order when the market changes.
Spring
- Bogamarì, sea urchin: The 2026 regional window ran from 2 January to 2 May, extended to 16 May after a bad winter. Alghero eats it raw on bread off the port quay, and as spaghetti ai ricci at Rafel.
- Carciofo spinoso sardo: Sardinian spiny artichokes come out of the Nurra plain from late winter into April, braised whole or shaved raw into salads on Alghero menus.
- Fragole di Sa Segada: Strawberries from the Alghero countryside peak in May, and the village of Sa Segada builds a two-day sagra around them with food stands and a charity cake.
- Fave e pecorino: Broad beans eaten raw with young Sardinian pecorino are the spring bar snack, and the Thursday Campagna Amica market in Sant'Agostino is the place to buy both.
Summer
- Aragosta: Sardinian spiny lobster is the summer luxury, served cold alla catalana with raw tomato and sweet onion at La Lepanto and Rafel, and priced by the etto.
- Arselle e fregola: Clams from the Calich lagoon and the shallow bays go into fregola, the toasted Sardinian semolina pasta, on almost every Alghero seafood list from June onwards.
- Tonno rosso: Bluefin from the Asinara gulf reaches Alghero raw plates in high summer, cut thin at Aquatica on the Banchina Sanità and worked across the port fish lists.
- Vermentino di Sardegna: The island's white is drunk young and cold through the summer, and the Nurra cellars at Santa Maria La Palma and I Piani sell it direct a short drive from town.
Autumn
- Vendemmia in the Nurra: Harvest runs through September on the plain behind Alghero. Sella & Mosca and Santa Maria La Palma both open for cellar visits, and Torbato is the grape to ask about.
- Olio nuovo: The first pressing of Sardinian DOP extra virgin oil comes out of the Ungias Galantè mill in late autumn, and Accademia Olearia runs tastings by appointment.
- Funghi e porceddu: Autumn moves Alghero kitchens inland for a while, towards suckling pig and mushrooms, which is when Trattoria Lo Romanì leans on its Tonara mountain repertoire.
- Bottarga di muggine: Grey mullet roe is cured through the autumn and grated over tagliolini at Al Refettorio and over clams at Nautilus for the rest of the year.
Winter
- Ricci di mare: The sea urchin season opens in early January under a regional decree that fixes the dates and the weekly quota per licence, and Alghero restaurants build short menus around it.
- Menjar blanc: The Catalan almond blancmange of Alghero belongs to the winter feast table, and Bon Bons still bakes it to a family recipe written in Alguerès.
- Seadas: The fried semolina pastry filled with fresh cheese and flooded with honey is a year-round dessert, but it is at its best in winter at Trattoria da Mirko.
- Cardo e carciofi: Cardoon and artichoke come into Nurra fields from December, and the Mercato Civico on Via Sassari is the cheapest place in Alghero to buy them.