La Duchessa is a pizzeria restaurant in Centro Storico, Parma.
Editorially verified August 27, 2026 by Lewis Vaughan, TableJourney editor. Source.
Signature dishes: Pizza, Salumi boards, Bistrot plates
Must order: A pizza and a glass from the Italian wine list, outside on the square.
Tip: The terrace on the square is the draw; service runs continuously so it catches both the aperitivo crowd and the post-theatre one.
Address: Piazza Giuseppe Garibaldi 1, 43121 Parma
Dispensa Emilia serves tigelle and gnocco fritto counter-style at its Parma branch, an Emilian fast-casual formula for salumi without the trattoria bill.
Signature: Tigelle, Gnocco fritto, Tagliatelle al ragu
Order: Tigelle filled with prosciutto and squacquerone to start.
Tip: Order at the counter and take a table; it is the cheapest respectable route to a full Emilian salumi spread near the station end of town.
Antica Osteria della Ghiaia fries torta fritta by the basket near Parma's old market and hosts a tortellata every 23 June for the feast of San Giovanni.
Signature: Torta fritta, Tortelli d'erbetta, Tortellata di San Giovanni
Order: Torta fritta with salumi; add the tortelli before the baskets win.
Tip: Dinner runs Friday and Saturday only; every other day it is a lunch house. Book June 23rd weeks ahead for the tortellata di San Giovanni.
Passione e Tradizione entered Gambero Rosso's 2025 pizza guide from Parma's west side with a hydrated Neapolitan dough, home-made fried starters and desserts.
Signature: Pizza napoletana, Homemade frittini, House desserts
Order: A classic margherita with the marked, leopard-spotted cornicione.
Tip: One of only two Parma pizzerias in Gambero Rosso's Pizzerie d'Italia 2025, and the cheaper of the two ways to test the city's pizza ceiling.
Cavaedium, opened in 2023 by Federico Tagliafierro, brought double-baked crunchy pizza to Parma and a Gambero Rosso 2025 guide entry within two years.
Signature: Non Marinara, Pala romana, Margherita
Order: The Non Marinara, sauced with three tomatoes and Tramonti oregano.
Tip: Pizzas arrive pre-cut in six slices and the dough rewards sharing; the pala romana is sized for two. There is a car park next door.
Dispensa Emilia serves tigelle and gnocco fritto counter-style at its Parma branch, an Emilian fast-casual formula for salumi without the trattoria bill.
Signature: Tigelle, Gnocco fritto, Tagliatelle al ragu
Order: Tigelle filled with prosciutto and squacquerone to start.
Tip: Order at the counter and take a table; it is the cheapest respectable route to a full Emilian salumi spread near the station end of town.
Osteria dei Servi works the old Ghiaia market square in Parma with Vacca Rossa beef, cavallo pesto and vintage-furnished rooms open every day of the week.
Signature: Vacca Rossa beef, Tortelli d'erbetta, Cavallo pesto
Order: Vacca Rossa beef, the red-cow breed behind the original Parmigiano.
Tip: Open seven days including Sunday dinner, and vegetarians eat better here than the meat-heavy menu suggests; ask for the veganisable risottos.
IRamen ladles the broth bowls Parma's traditional kitchens never touch, with vegan ramen options listed on HappyCow, across from the Parco Ducale side.
Signature: Ramen, Gyoza, Edamame
Order: The house ramen; vegans get their own broth and toppings.
Tip: The most dependable non-Italian kitchen in a city that has few, and one of the only places in Parma where a vegan gets a hot main after 21:00.
Antica Osteria della Ghiaia fries torta fritta by the basket near Parma's old market and hosts a tortellata every 23 June for the feast of San Giovanni.
Signature: Torta fritta, Tortelli d'erbetta, Tortellata di San Giovanni
Order: Torta fritta with salumi; add the tortelli before the baskets win.
Tip: Dinner runs Friday and Saturday only; every other day it is a lunch house. Book June 23rd weeks ahead for the tortellata di San Giovanni.
