The old fishermen's grid between the port and the Bastione, where Via Sardegna holds the trattorias that still recite the catch instead of printing it.
Luigi Pomata cooks Carloforte tuna in Cagliari, three rooms and a port-facing terrace above Viale Regina Margherita, raw fish to open and red tuna to follow.
Order: Red tuna, raw then seared, the house speciality.
Tip: Lunch service runs 13:00 to 15:00 Tuesday to Saturday and is the cheaper way in; tinned house tuna is sold to take home.
Terra sits on the ground floor of Palazzo Tirso in Cagliari, a central design kitchen turning Sardinian seasonal produce into a gourmet carte.
Order: The seasonal Sardinian tasting menu.
Tip: The same hotel runs the Cielo terrace upstairs, so book Terra for dinner and move up for a drink over the Golfo degli Angeli.
Antica Hostaria on Via Cavour is the old-school Cagliari osteria of the Marina, dark wood and a fish-led list of Sardinian classics under Antonio Mura.
Order: Fregula con arselle, or the baked capon with artichokes and potatoes.
Tip: Closed Sunday. The room started as a mid-nineteenth-century inn and the kitchen still leans on the fish list rather than the printed classics.
Trattoria Lillicu has fed the Marina from Via Sardegna for generations, marble tables, no printed menu, and whatever the Cagliari boats landed that morning.
Order: Spaghetti with arselle clams and bottarga.
Tip: Do 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.
Su Cumbidu on Via Napoli feeds the Marina fixed-price Sardinian menus under brick arches, culurgiones and seadas at prices Cagliari students accept.
Order: Culurgiones, potato and mint, in tomato sauce.
Tip: The set menus are the value play at around €20 to 30; go early, because groups book out the arched back room.
Stella Marina di Montecristo works the far end of Via Sardegna in Cagliari, sixty covers of maritime kit and fish bought fresh that morning.
Order: Whatever came off the boats that morning, cooked simply.
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.
Sa Schironada on Via Baylle runs long hours for the Marina in Cagliari, Sardinian fish and roast plates and a crisp fritto misto from the Gulf.
Order: Zuppa di cozze with pane carasau, then seadas.
Tip: Open every day and late, which makes it the fallback when the smaller trattorias in the Marina have shut their kitchens.
Trattoria da Serafino works a corner of Via Lepanto in Cagliari, an air-conditioned room of local fish plates and a back room for long lunches.
Order: Whatever local fish is on the board that day.
Tip: Closed Wednesday; the private back room takes the business lunches, so the front fills with regulars.
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.
Tip: Closed Tuesday, and the kitchen writes a new menu each season; WhatsApp booking is the fastest way to get a table.
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.
Tip: Closed Tuesday; there is a garden at the back and the grappa and Sardinian wine list is longer than the food menu.
Terra sits on the ground floor of Palazzo Tirso in Cagliari, a central design kitchen turning Sardinian seasonal produce into a gourmet carte.
Order: The seasonal Sardinian tasting menu.
Tip: The same hotel runs the Cielo terrace upstairs, so book Terra for dinner and move up for a drink over the Golfo degli Angeli.
Luigi Pomata cooks Carloforte tuna in Cagliari, three rooms and a port-facing terrace above Viale Regina Margherita, raw fish to open and red tuna to follow.
Order: Red tuna, raw then seared, the house speciality.
Tip: Lunch service runs 13:00 to 15:00 Tuesday to Saturday and is the cheaper way in; tinned house tuna is sold to take home.
Antica Hostaria on Via Cavour is the old-school Cagliari osteria of the Marina, dark wood and a fish-led list of Sardinian classics under Antonio Mura.
Order: Fregula con arselle, or the baked capon with artichokes and potatoes.
Tip: Closed Sunday. The room started as a mid-nineteenth-century inn and the kitchen still leans on the fish list rather than the printed classics.
Trattoria Lillicu has fed the Marina from Via Sardegna for generations, marble tables, no printed menu, and whatever the Cagliari boats landed that morning.
Order: Spaghetti with arselle clams and bottarga.
Tip: Do 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.
Su Cumbidu on Via Napoli feeds the Marina fixed-price Sardinian menus under brick arches, culurgiones and seadas at prices Cagliari students accept.
Order: Culurgiones, potato and mint, in tomato sauce.
Tip: The set menus are the value play at around €20 to 30; go early, because groups book out the arched back room.
Sa Schironada on Via Baylle runs long hours for the Marina in Cagliari, Sardinian fish and roast plates and a crisp fritto misto from the Gulf.
Order: Zuppa di cozze with pane carasau, then seadas.
Tip: Open every day and late, which makes it the fallback when the smaller trattorias in the Marina have shut their kitchens.
Trattoria da Serafino works a corner of Via Lepanto in Cagliari, an air-conditioned room of local fish plates and a back room for long lunches.
Order: Whatever local fish is on the board that day.
Tip: Closed Wednesday; the private back room takes the business lunches, so the front fills with regulars.
Stella Marina di Montecristo works the far end of Via Sardegna in Cagliari, sixty covers of maritime kit and fish bought fresh that morning.
Order: Whatever came off the boats that morning, cooked simply.
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.
Impasto works Piazzetta Savoia in Cagliari's Marina as pasta laboratory, pizzeria and bakery at once, rolling fresh pasta and baking bread daily.
Order: Fresh pasta from the counter, then a slice of the day's bread.
Tip: Named a Pizzeria Eccellente by 50 Top Pizza in 2026; the tables on the piazzetta are first come, first served in summer.
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.
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.
Tip: Closed Tuesday, and the kitchen writes a new menu each season; WhatsApp booking is the fastest way to get a table.
Antico Caffè has traded on Piazza Costituzione in Cagliari since 1838, a protected historic room under the Bastione with pastries from 07:00.
Signature drink: Espresso
Order: An espresso and a pastry at the marble counter.
Tip: Italy's culture ministry lists the room as protected; tables outside face the Bastione di Saint Remy and run until 02:00.
Caffe Svizzero sits on Largo Carlo Felice in Cagliari, a traditional cafe under a vaulted ceiling, the kind of room the city has kept rather than remodelled.
Signature drink: Espresso
Order: Morning coffee and a pastry under the vault.
Tip: The vaulted room is the reason to stop rather than the menu; it works for a coffee and a pastry standing at the counter.
Impasto works Piazzetta Savoia in Cagliari's Marina as pasta laboratory, pizzeria and bakery at once, rolling fresh pasta and baking bread daily.
Signature drink: Coffee with fresh bread
Order: Fresh pasta from the counter, then a slice of the day's bread.
Tip: Named a Pizzeria Eccellente by 50 Top Pizza in 2026; the tables on the piazzetta are first come, first served in summer.
Durke has baked on Via Napoli in Cagliari since 1850, a historic pasticceria renowned for handmade Sardinian sweets, sold loose or boxed for travel.
Order: A box of the traditional Sardinian sweets off the counter.
Tip: Sweets are sold to eat there or boxed for travel, which is the reason most people climb Via Napoli for them.
Worth the queue: Sardinian sweets
Impasto works Piazzetta Savoia in Cagliari's Marina as pasta laboratory, pizzeria and bakery at once, rolling fresh pasta and baking bread daily.
Order: Fresh pasta from the counter, then a slice of the day's bread.
Tip: Named a Pizzeria Eccellente by 50 Top Pizza in 2026; the tables on the piazzetta are first come, first served in summer.
Worth the queue: Daily loaf
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.
Tip: Closed Tuesday; there is a garden at the back and the grappa and Sardinian wine list is longer than the food menu.
Worth the queue: Pane frattau
Sabores is a Marina bottega in Cagliari on Via Baylle, Sardinian cheese and cured meat sold by weight and cut into boards for the aperitivo.
Signature pour: Vermentino di Sardegna
Wine focus: Sardinian bottles from the shop shelves
Food: Taglieri, small and large
Order: The large tagliere of Sardinian cheese and salumi.
Tip: Two board sizes, small and large, and both come with wine by the glass; the shop shelves are the souvenir run.
Spirits Boutique opened on Via Dettori in Cagliari's Marina in December 2021, mixologist Emilio Rocchino's vintage room behind a wall of rum and gin.
Signature drink: Myrtle-led cocktails
Food: Snacks
Order: A cocktail built on Sardinian myrtle or mirto.
Tip: The back bar is the draw, whisky, rum, gin and vermouth from everywhere; it opens from midday and runs late, with snacks rather than a kitchen.
Sabores is a Marina bottega in Cagliari on Via Baylle, Sardinian cheese and cured meat sold by weight and cut into boards for the aperitivo.
Signature drink: Vermentino by the glass
Food: Taglieri
Order: The large tagliere of Sardinian cheese and salumi.
Tip: Two board sizes, small and large, and both come with wine by the glass; the shop shelves are the souvenir run.
Antico Caffè has traded on Piazza Costituzione in Cagliari since 1838, a protected historic room under the Bastione with pastries from 07:00.
Signature drink: Evening aperitivo
Food: Pastries and plates
Order: An espresso and a pastry at the marble counter.
Tip: Italy's culture ministry lists the room as protected; tables outside face the Bastione di Saint Remy and run until 02:00.
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.
Try: Pane frattau
Order: Pane frattau, tomato, pecorino and a poached egg.
Tip: Closed Tuesday; there is a garden at the back and the grappa and Sardinian wine list is longer than the food menu.
Impasto works Piazzetta Savoia in Cagliari's Marina as pasta laboratory, pizzeria and bakery at once, rolling fresh pasta and baking bread daily.
Try: Pizza and fresh pasta to take away
Order: Fresh pasta from the counter, then a slice of the day's bread.
Tip: Named a Pizzeria Eccellente by 50 Top Pizza in 2026; the tables on the piazzetta are first come, first served in summer.
Durke has baked on Via Napoli in Cagliari since 1850, a historic pasticceria renowned for handmade Sardinian sweets, sold loose or boxed for travel.
Try: Pardulas and Sardinian sweets
Order: A box of the traditional Sardinian sweets off the counter.
Tip: Sweets are sold to eat there or boxed for travel, which is the reason most people climb Via Napoli for them.
Worth the queue: Sardinian sweets
Su Cumbidu on Via Napoli feeds the Marina fixed-price Sardinian menus under brick arches, culurgiones and seadas at prices Cagliari students accept.
Try: Fixed-price Sardinian menus
Order: Culurgiones, potato and mint, in tomato sauce.
Tip: The set menus are the value play at around €20 to 30; go early, because groups book out the arched back room.
Impasto works Piazzetta Savoia in Cagliari's Marina as pasta laboratory, pizzeria and bakery at once, rolling fresh pasta and baking bread daily.
Try: Fresh pasta and pizza
Order: Fresh pasta from the counter, then a slice of the day's bread.
Tip: Named a Pizzeria Eccellente by 50 Top Pizza in 2026; the tables on the piazzetta are first come, first served in summer.
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.
Try: Pane frattau
Order: Pane frattau, tomato, pecorino and a poached egg.
Tip: Closed Tuesday; there is a garden at the back and the grappa and Sardinian wine list is longer than the food menu.
Sa Schironada on Via Baylle runs long hours for the Marina in Cagliari, Sardinian fish and roast plates and a crisp fritto misto from the Gulf.
Try: Sardinian fish and roast plates
Order: Zuppa di cozze with pane carasau, then seadas.
Tip: Open every day and late, which makes it the fallback when the smaller trattorias in the Marina have shut their kitchens.
Trattoria da Serafino works a corner of Via Lepanto in Cagliari, an air-conditioned room of local fish plates and a back room for long lunches.
Try: Local fish trattoria plates
Order: Whatever local fish is on the board that day.
Tip: Closed Wednesday; the private back room takes the business lunches, so the front fills with regulars.
Antico Caffè has traded on Piazza Costituzione in Cagliari since 1838, a protected historic room under the Bastione with pastries from 07:00.
Order: An espresso and a pastry at the marble counter.
Tip: Italy's culture ministry lists the room as protected; tables outside face the Bastione di Saint Remy and run until 02:00.
Caffe Svizzero sits on Largo Carlo Felice in Cagliari, a traditional cafe under a vaulted ceiling, the kind of room the city has kept rather than remodelled.
Order: Morning coffee and a pastry under the vault.
Tip: The vaulted room is the reason to stop rather than the menu; it works for a coffee and a pastry standing at the counter.
Impasto works Piazzetta Savoia in Cagliari's Marina as pasta laboratory, pizzeria and bakery at once, rolling fresh pasta and baking bread daily.
Order: Fresh pasta from the counter, then a slice of the day's bread.
Tip: Named a Pizzeria Eccellente by 50 Top Pizza in 2026; the tables on the piazzetta are first come, first served in summer.
Sa Schironada on Via Baylle runs long hours for the Marina in Cagliari, Sardinian fish and roast plates and a crisp fritto misto from the Gulf.
Try: Culurgiones and fish
Order: Zuppa di cozze with pane carasau, then seadas.
Tip: Open every day and late, which makes it the fallback when the smaller trattorias in the Marina have shut their kitchens.