Osteria della Mattonella in Naples' Toledo quarter runs the home-style Neapolitan carte with daily pasta specials, polpette napoletane and the genovese cooked over six hours.
Must order: Genovese pasta, polpette napoletane, pasta e fagioli.
Tip: Closed Sunday evening and Monday. Book a week ahead for weekends; the genovese runs all-day.
Address: Via G. Nicotera 13, 80132 Napoli, Naples
Umberto in Naples' Chiaia has run the family room since 1916, with tubettoni do treddeta (3-fingered seafood pasta) and spaghetti alle vongole anchoring the historic carte.
Order: Tubettoni do treddeta (house specialty since 1916) and spaghetti alle vongole veraci.
Tip: Open Mon-Sat 12:00 to 15:30 and 19:30 to 23:30; closed Sunday. Book a week ahead via the website for weekends.
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 in the historic 1951 room.
Order: The five-pizza tasting menu and the modern margherita with three tomato cuts.
Tip: Book on the website three weeks ahead. Tasting runs 45 euros; the historic counter still serves the classic pizzas.
Nennella in Naples' Quartieri Spagnoli runs the most theatrical service in town: shouted orders, plastic stools, 13-euro three-course lunch. Sunday queue starts at 11:30 around the block.
Order: Pasta e patate con provola, polpette al sugo, daily Quartieri Spagnoli antipasto.
Tip: No bookings, cash only. Arrive by 12:00 for lunch or 19:00 for dinner. Closed Sunday all day.
Tandem on Via Paladino in Naples is the modern trattoria built entirely around the Neapolitan Sunday ragu: paccheri, ziti spezzati and the bread-dunking ritual, daily noon to 24:00.
Order: Paccheri al ragu napoletano, then bread to mop the sauce. Polpettone for the table.
Tip: No bookings; arrive 12:30 or 19:30 for the shortest queue. Three Tandem rooms share the carte.
Da Michele in Naples' Forcella has baked margherita and marinara since 1870, the city's defining pizza counter. The Eat Pray Love queue still wraps the block at 13:00.
Order: Pizza margherita and pizza marinara, the only two on the carte for 150 years.
Tip: Take a numbered ticket from the door and wait outside. Margherita is 5 euros 50; cash preferred.
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 the classic margherita.
Order: Montanara fried pizza, margherita and angioletti dough fritters to start.
Tip: Closed Monday lunch; otherwise daily 12:00 to 24:00. No bookings; arrive 12:30 or 19:30 for the shortest queue.
