Stella Marina di Montecristo is a seafood restaurant in Marina, Cagliari.
Editorially verified August 1, 2026 by Lewis Vaughan, TableJourney editor. Source.
Must order: Whatever came off the boats that morning, cooked simply.
Why locals love it: Sixty covers at the quiet end of Via Sardegna, where the fish arrives that morning and the room stays local.
Tip: It shuts for a variable stretch in August, and the sixty covers go fast in summer, so call the mobile number to hold a table.
Address: Via Sardegna 140, 09124 Cagliari
Panefratteria builds its Cagliari menu on pane carasau, the sheet bread softened into pane frattau and zuppa gallurese in a modern room on Via Azuni.
Order: Pane frattau, tomato, pecorino and a poached egg.
Why locals love it: A whole menu built on pane carasau, the sheet bread most visitors only meet as a bread basket in other rooms.
Tip: Closed Tuesday; there is a garden at the back and the grappa and Sardinian wine list is longer than the food menu.
Osteria Kobuta cooks Japanese-Sardinian plates in Cagliari off Largo Carlo Felice, a seasonal menu built for sharing in a room of maybe ten tables.
Order: The seasonal sharing menu, start to finish.
Why locals love it: Ten tables of Japanese-Sardinian cooking behind Largo Carlo Felice, a room most Cagliari guides still miss entirely.
Tip: Closed Tuesday, and the kitchen writes a new menu each season; WhatsApp booking is the fastest way to get a table.
Il Birrificio di Cagliari brews on Via Newton and pours its own beer beside grilled meat, the city's own brewpub rather than another bottle bar.
Order: The house lager alongside the grilled beef.
Why locals love it: Cagliari's own brewpub sits out by Via Newton, far enough from the centre that visitors rarely find the taps.
Tip: It took a Barcelona Beer Challenge gold for its Tuvixeddu; it sits out by the ring road, so it is a taxi rather than a walk from the Marina.
Babeuf pairs tea, wine and slow reading on Via Giardini in Cagliari, a small Villanova room of cheese boards, tartare and shelves of magazines.
Order: A tartare and a glass off the natural list.
Why locals love it: Part wine bar, part reading room on Via Giardini, the kind of Villanova address locals keep for slow evenings.
Tip: It works better as a long early evening than a quick drink; the reading material on the shelves is there to be used.
Panefratteria builds its Cagliari menu on pane carasau, the sheet bread softened into pane frattau and zuppa gallurese in a modern room on Via Azuni.
Order: Pane frattau, tomato, pecorino and a poached egg.
Why locals love it: A whole menu built on pane carasau, the sheet bread most visitors only meet as a bread basket in other rooms.
Tip: Closed Tuesday; there is a garden at the back and the grappa and Sardinian wine list is longer than the food menu.
Osteria Kobuta cooks Japanese-Sardinian plates in Cagliari off Largo Carlo Felice, a seasonal menu built for sharing in a room of maybe ten tables.
Order: The seasonal sharing menu, start to finish.
Why locals love it: Ten tables of Japanese-Sardinian cooking behind Largo Carlo Felice, a room most Cagliari guides still miss entirely.
Tip: Closed Tuesday, and the kitchen writes a new menu each season; WhatsApp booking is the fastest way to get a table.
Gaijin Izakaya brings small Japanese plates to Cagliari on Via Giacomo Puccini, a narrow room of skewers and donburi that the Gambero Rosso guide rates.
Order: A run of skewers off the charcoal counter.
Why locals love it: A four-day-a-week izakaya in San Benedetto, off every Marina tourist route and rated by the Italian guides.
Tip: Only four days a week, Wednesday to Saturday, and both sittings are small, so book ahead rather than walking up.
La Locanda dei Buoni e Cattivi in Cagliari is a villa restaurant and guest house that trains young staff, cooking seasonal organic Sardinian plates.
Order: Sunday's Sa Picchettada buffet lunch.
Why locals love it: A villa restaurant that doubles as a training kitchen for young Sardinians, with a garden nobody expects behind the gate.
Tip: Weekday lunch runs a fixed-price menu alongside the carte; the garden and terrace are the reason to book ahead in spring.
