30 editor picks across Italy.
30 casual dining worth the trip across Italy, editor-ranked by TableJourney. All Italy guides.
Bu:r in Milan's Porta Romana is Eugenio Boer's modern-Italian fine bistro, the Dutch-Italian chef's flagship since 2018, holding one Michelin star.
OrderThe Bu:r tasting set; the herb tortelli and the slow-braised beef cheek are signature plates.
TipBookings open three weeks ahead. The lunch carte at 65 euros is the cheaper way in; vegetarian tasting available with notice.
Buatta on Via Vittorio Emanuele in Palermo is the city's flagship cucina povera room, a Michelin Bib Gourmand for seasonal Sicilian plates inside.
OrderSarde a beccafico and the caponata, the carte flagships.
TipBook ahead. The mixed antipasti for two is the efficient lunch order.
Consorzio in Turin's Quadrilatero Romano is a slow-food trattoria with a fine-dining wine list. Tumin ravioli, finanziera, agnolotti del plin.
Trattoria Al Bersagliere in Verona is the family-run 1928 trattoria in Borgo dei Filippini, where bigoli con l'arna and pastissada de caval are the plates.
OrderBigoli con l'arna, Pastissada de caval, Tagliere
TipThe bigoli con l'arna and pastissada are reference Veronese plates; lunch with primo, secondo and a glass runs about €32.
Osteria del Bugiardo in Verona is the Buglioni winery's tavern on Corso Porta Borsari, a cicchetti operation with Valpolicella. A 2026 editor pick.
OrderTagliere, Lasagna al ragu, Polpette al sugo
TipArrive by 18:30 for aperitivo seats; the cicchetti board with a glass of Buglioni Ripasso runs about €12.
28 Posti in Milan's Navigli runs a 28-seat counter, the lunch trattoria where Marco Ambrosino cooked Mediterranean modern Italian from 2010.
OrderThe seasonal tasting set; the squash ravioli with sage is the signature primo.
TipBookings open one week ahead. Lunch sittings 12:30 and 14:00; the chef's counter overlooks the open kitchen.
Morelli in Milan's Sempione is chef Giancarlo Morelli's flagship dining room, opened 2010, with one Michelin star. Located in Centro Storico.
OrderThe Morelli tasting set; the veal tortelli and the lemon risotto are the signature plates.
TipBookings open three weeks ahead. The chef's counter at the open kitchen is the seat to ask for; vegetarian tasting available.
Da Michele in Naples' Forcella has baked margherita and marinara since 1870, the city's defining pizza counter. Kitchen leans neapolitan pizza.
OrderPizza margherita and pizza marinara, the only two on the carte for 150 years.
TipTake a numbered ticket from the door and wait outside. Margherita is 5 euros 50; cash preferred.
Ciro Oliva's Concettina ai Tre Santi in Naples' Sanita is the modern pizza fine-dining counter, with tasting menus of six small pizzas and a wine pairing.
OrderThe five-pizza tasting menu and the modern margherita with three tomato cuts.
TipBook on the website three weeks ahead. Tasting runs 45 euros; the historic counter still serves the classic pizzas.
Le Angeliche in Palermo's Capo market is a four-women-owned bistro with a hidden garden courtyard, market-sourced Sicilian plates from breakfast.
OrderPasta alla Norma and the sarde a beccafico, with a cassata to finish.
TipClosed Sunday evening and Monday. Book the secret courtyard table by phone.
Piccolo Napoli on Piazzetta Mulino a Vento in Palermo's Borgo Vecchio is a 70-year family seafood trattoria; daily carte dictated by the morning market.
OrderSpaghetti con bottarga and whatever crudi arrived that morning.
TipLunch only most days. Book one day ahead; the catch board is dictated verbally.
Scannabue on Largo Saluzzo in Turin's San Salvario is the Bib Gourmand bistrot for vitello tonnato, fresh tajarin and a fair Piedmont wine carte.
Trattoria Tre Marchetti in Verona has run a Veneto kitchen since 1960 on the alley behind the Arena. A 2026 TableJourney editor pick with hours and dishes.
OrderPearà bollito misto, Pastissada de caval, Risotto all'Amarone
TipThe pearà bollito misto (October to March) needs 24-hour notice; ask for opera-night seating after 22:30 if you hold Arena tickets.
A quiet side alley 200 metres from Juliet's House holds Osteria da Ugo, a Verona trattoria cooking pearà, bigoli con l'arna and polenta e baccala.
OrderPearà, Bigoli con l'arna, Polenta e baccala
TipThe pearà sauce with bollito misto on Sundays October to March is the dish; book 48 hours out for that window.
Du de Cope in Verona runs an inventive wood-fired-pizza kitchen in Galleria Pellicciai off Piazza delle Erbe. A 2026 TableJourney editor pick.
OrderPizza margherita, Pizza con stracciatella, Pizza con Mortadella
TipThe lunch service is the city's best central-Verona quick meal; the pizza with stracciatella is the must-order.
Trattoria Lillicu has fed the Marina from Via Sardegna for generations, marble tables, no printed menu, and whatever the Cagliari boats landed that morning.
OrderSpaghetti with arselle clams and bottarga.
TipDo not ask for a menu, the waiter recites the catch; arrive by 13:00 or after 14:00 to miss the queue. Monday the trattoria stays shut.
Framento is Pierluigi Fais's Cagliari pizzeria on Corso Vittorio Emanuele II, sourdough and long fermentation, 51st in 50 Top Pizza Italia 2026.
OrderLa Rimuginata, smoked mullet, cherry tomato, fiordilatte and mint.
TipIt runs lunch as well as dinner every day, which is rare for a Cagliari pizzeria; book, because the room turns over slowly.
Remulass in Milan's Porta Romana runs a vegetable-led modern Italian carte from chef Diego Bottani since 2022. Kitchen leans modern italian, vegetable-led.
OrderThe seasonal vegetable tasting; the herb risotto and the radish-fermented main are the signature plates.
TipBookings open one week ahead. Lunch is a calmer service; the 21:00 dinner sitting is the busy one.
Altatto Bistrot in Milan's Porta Venezia is Alessandra Cozzolino and Sara Nicolosi's vegetable-led bistrot, the lighter neighbourhood sister to Altatto.
OrderThe vegetable plate of the day, the herb tagliolini and the seasonal tasting set.
TipBookings open ten days ahead. The chef's table for four overlooks the open kitchen; vegan option on request.
Starita in Naples' Materdei has run the wood ovens since 1901, with the montanara fried pizza (Sophia Loren's screen choice) the unmissable order alongside.
OrderMontanara fried pizza, margherita and angioletti dough fritters to start.
TipClosed Monday lunch; otherwise daily 12:00-24:00. No bookings; arrive 12:30 or 19:30 for the shortest queue.
Gino Sorbillo's headquarters on Via dei Tribunali in Naples is the third-generation family pizzeria, with 21 siblings carrying the dough across four city.
OrderMargherita with San Marzano DOP and the seasonal special with friarielli.
TipNo bookings; arrive 12:30 or 19:00 for the shortest queue. Lievito Madre two doors down handles overflow.
Ai Cascinari on Via D'Ossuna in Palermo is a 1949-founded Slow Food trattoria behind the Capo market; Sunday lunch carte runs the full cucina povera.
OrderPasta con le sarde and the Sunday anelletti al forno, the cucina povera baseline.
TipBook ahead for Sunday lunch. The room turns three times; gluten-free pasta with notice.
Bisso Bistrot at the Quattro Canti in Palermo is a former bookshop turned communal-table bistro for Sicilian classics, no reservations, queues most nights.
OrderPasta alla Norma and the involtini di melanzane, with house red.
TipNo reservations; arrive early. The communal table fills first.
Pastificio Defilippis on Via Lagrange in Turin has rolled handmade pasta since 1872, opened by a Savoy chef. Agnolotti are the order, open seven days.
Trattoria al Gatto Nero on Burano is the 1965 Bovo family room now run by Massimiliano Bovo, the canonical lagoon-fish lunch on the colourful fishing island.
OrderRisotto di go, bigoli al nero di seppia, the mixed grilled fish.
TipBook two weeks ahead. Ferry 12 from Fondamente Nove takes 45 minutes. Closed Mondays.
Pizzeria da Salvatore in Verona is the city's oldest pizzeria, opened in 1961 by the Rasulo family from Napoli. A 2026 TableJourney editor pick.
OrderPizza margherita, Pizza alla burrata, Pizza pistacchio e mortadella
TipWalk-ins after 21:30 wait; book at 19:30 for the first turnover. The burrata pizza is the move and the marinara the benchmark.
Via Rosa in Verona holds Osteria Caffe Monte Baldo, a standing-counter cicchetti bar open to midnight, with luccio e polenta on the seated menu.
OrderLuccio e polenta, Cicchetti misti, Stoccafisso
TipOpen from 10:00 to midnight daily; standing-counter cicchetti costs €2 to 4 each, the luccio sit-down primo runs €14.
Trattoria Arco dei Gavi in Verona runs a 20-seat family kitchen south of the pedestrian zone in San Zeno. Editor pick for 2026 with what to order and book.
OrderBigoli con l'arna, Risotto all'Amarone, Tiramisu
TipBook 4 days ahead because the 20 seats fill from regulars; the bigoli con l'arna is the order and the wine list runs only Valpolicella Classico.
The Focaccia del Milese is a registered Alghero recipe, cut to order opposite the port for about €3.50 and eaten standing on the pavement outside.
OrderThe Focaccia del Milese, filled with tomato, tuna, egg, anchovy, rocket and pancetta.
Salumeria Simoni on Via Drapperie in Bologna's Quadrilatero is the 1960s-founded family salumeria with a dine-in tasting room behind the counter.
OrderThe mortadella platter, the tigelle with squacquerone, the prosciutto di Parma 24-month.
TipThe dine-in tasting room behind the counter takes walk-ins for the tagliere; the salumi counter is busiest at 11:00.
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