ABSOLUTE ITALY Via Maggio 35 50125 Florence, Italy Phone: (39) 055-212877 Restaurant Recommendations by Region LOMBARDIA MILANO Al Pont de Ferr Ripa di Porta Ticinese 55 +39.02.89406277 Located in the trendy Navigli neighborhood, Al Pont de Ferr offers creative dishes that fuse tradition and innovation. Specialties range from a variety of homemade pasta to more creative dishes like grilled baccalà served over fennel purée. The restaurant also offers an ample selection of the highest quality cured meats and cheeses. The wine list is extensive and impressive, and owner Maida Mercuri, a passionate hostess and sommelier, can be counted on to provide an unforgettable meal with wines to match. Moderate to high prices. El Brellin Ristorante Vicolo dei Lavandai +39.02.58101351 (Closed Sunday evenings) El Brellin offers typical Milanese dishes at moderate prices in the cool Navigli neighborhood. In warm weather patrons can dine at outside tables overlooking the canal. Trattoria Meneghina Corso Magenta 78 +39.02.58109204 (Closed Mondays) This typical Milanese trattoria offers traditional fare cooked to perfection. Prices are reasonable, a relative novelty in Milanese restaurants. Specialties include fresh pasta with sauces that change with the seasons and cotoletta alla milanese. Unlike many restaurants in Milan’s city center, Meneghina does not focus its energy on striving for trendiness but instead concentrates on serving simple, delicious food in a warm, comfortable atmosphere. THE LAKES REGION BELLAGIO Bilacus Salita Serbelloni 30-32 +39.031.950480 (Closed December-March and Mondays in November and April) Bilacus serves regional and Italian specialties at very moderate prices; at lunch they offer a prix fixe menu for €17. Dishes range from meat to fresh fish to classic pasta dishes to fresh salads. In warm weather patrons can enjoy their meal under a pergola on the restaurant’s outdoor terrace. LEZZENO Crotto dei Pescatori Via Casate 77 +39.031.914597 (Closed Tuesdays) The restaurant of the Hotel Crotto dei Pescatori has a beautiful terrace situation directly on the water. The restaurant’s specialty is fresh fish, both fresh and saltwater. Prices are moderate to high. CERNOBBIO Gatto Nero Via Monte Santo 69 +39.031.512042 Situated on a hilltop overlooking Lake Como, offers traditional dishes in an elegant and chic setting. Patrons can enjoy outdoor dining on the restaurant’s terrace in summer months. Dishes are comprised mostly of local seafood but also include homemade ravioli with taleggio and risotto with porcini mushrooms. Prices are moderate to high. Il Giardino Via Regina 73 +39.031.511154 Located on a tiny sidestreet in the center of this pituresque town, Il Giardino serves traditional dishes at moderate prices. Diners can enjoy their meal on patios surrounded by palm trees and flowers that look onto Lake Como. COMO La Taverna Spagnola Piazza Alessandro Volta 33 +39. 031.272460 (Closed Wednesdays) An informal, reasonably-priced restaurant with a laid-back, comfortable atmosphere. The menu ranges from pizza to paella and the service is warm and friendly. Navedano Via Giuseppe Velzi 4 +39.031. 308080 (Closed all day Tuesdays and Wednesdays at lunch) Located in a 19th-century villa just a few minutes from Como’s historical center, this Michelin-reccommended formal restaurant offers creative regional dishes that focus on fresh, seasonal ingredients. Flowers adorn the entire dining room, and in summer patrons can dine on a veranda that overlooks the restaurant’s beautiful garden. There is also an impressive and extensive wine list. Prices are high. TREMEZZO La Fagurida Via San Martino 12 +39.0344.40676 (Closed Mondays) Located in what was a stone cottage overlooking the lake, La Fagurida has dining roms on different levels of the old home and diners can also sit on the veranda in warm weather. Traditional regional dishes, inlcuding polenta, are the specialty. Prices are moderate. VENETO VENEZIA Antico Pignolo Calle Specchieri 451 +39. 041.5228123 This restaurant with wonderful Venetian dishes offers a more formal dining experience with faultless service, and there is a backyard patio that is lovely when the weather is warm. Classic seafood dishes including “the kings’ plate: scampi, scallops, and seasonal vegetables; risotto with shellfish and squid ink; and lobster are the specialty. Osteria Ai Assassini S. Marco 3695 +39.041.5287986 (Closed Sundays) Osteria Ai Assassini is a typical “bacaro,” the Venetian word for an informal restaurant or wine bar where locals and tourists meet to dine and savor Italian wines and imported beers.This casual osteria offers a more moderate dining experience in a comfortble, informal atmosphere. The menu includes both meat and seafood dishes, ranging from rabbit, chicken, duck, and pheasant to cod to typical Venetian fish. There is also an ample offering of pastas, vegetables, and cheeses. Osteria Oliva Nera Castello 3417/18 +39.041.5222170 This osteria is run by a fantastic, friendly husband and wife team whose passion is Venetian cooking. Specialties include lightly fried sardines and onions marinated in vinegar, baccalà, stuffed fried zucchini flowers, spaghetti with anchovies and onions, and a variety of preprations of local fish and squid. Because of the restaurant’s overwhelming popularity, the owners have opened a sister restaurant next door, so if one is full, you might have luck at Oliva Nera 2! Fiaschetteria Toscana Salizada s. Giovanni Grisostomo Cannareggio 5719 +39.041.5285281 (Closed Tuesdays and Wednesday at lunch, end of July/beginning of Aug for vacation) This historic Venetian restaurant specializes in fresh seafood and pasta and has been run by the Busatto family for decades, who insist upon the finest ingredients and local seafood from the Veneto region. The restaurant is also known for it’s extensive wine list of over 600 labels from all over Italy; the homemade desserts had the honor of being published on the cover of Bon Appetit magazine some years ago, and still have the same scrumptuous quality today! Trattoria al Calice est. 1537 Calle degli Stagneri, 5228 +39.041.5209775 Dont be surprised to see many of the local gondoliere’s at lunch here as this trattoria is well-known among the locals for its honest food and fair prices, specializing in fresh seafood, pasta, risotto and other local specialties. We returned twice on a recent trip for the linguine with fresh white fish and olives! VERONA 12 Apostoli Corticella San Marco 3 +39.045.596.999 (Closed Sundays evenings and Mondays) This restaurant has been in the Gioco family for over 100 years and is one of the oldest in Verona. It boasts a fantastic wine cellar into which clients can descend with the owner to see the fascinating Roman ruins that were discovered there when renovations were being carried out in the 1980s. There is also a collection of the pens of famous writers from all over Italy who have won the 12 Apostoli prize for journalists and authors who have recently published a book. Specialties include typical Veronese dishes like porcini mushroom terrine, tagliatelle with herbs, branzino with olives, and veal. LIGURIA CAMOGLI (GENOVA) La Rotonda Via Garibaldi 101 +39.0185.774502 (Closed Mondays in winter) The terrace of this restaurant offers beautiful views of the Ligurian sea, and outside dining is a must. The extensive menu offers everything from fish to pizza, as well as one of Liguria’s most prized pasta condiments, pesto alla genovese. SANTA MARGHERITA LIGURE Trattoria La Solita Zuppa Via Romana 7 +39.0185.289594 (Closed Wednesdays) This trattoria offers traditional local fish dishes as well as grilled meat at reasonable prices. The atmosphere is warm and the service friendly. EMILIA ROMAGNA SAN VITO (MODENA) Antica Trattoria La Busa Via Medicine 2284 +39.059.468019 (Closed Sunday evenings and Mondays) A fantastic restaurant not far from the Ferrari gallery that offers great home-style Modenese cooking at reasonable prices in a very casual, comfortable atmosphere. TOSCANA FIRENZE RESTAURANTS Acqua Al Due Via della Vigna Vecchia 40 +39.055.284170 This restaurant which now has locations in Washington, DC and San Diego is very popular among American visitors. Specialties include a sampling of specialty primi piatti and filetto in balsamic vinegar or a blueberry reduction. Prices are moderate. Borgo Antico Piazza Santo Spirito 6r +39.055.210437 This restaurant located steps away from the church of Santo Spirito has a large outdoor patio perfect for people watching on the piazza. The vast menu selection ranges from big salads to a variety of pasta dishes to pizza. Prices are reasonable. Borgo San Jacopo Bogo San Iacopo 62 +39.055.281661 Part of the Lungarno Hotels group, this chic restaurant offers innovative interpretations of traditional Italian fare. The atmosphere is very cool and the wait staff is extremely accommodating and knowledgeable about the outstanding cuisine. Prices are relatively high but more than appropriate to the level of the chef’s talents. Buca dell’Orafo Via dei Girolami +39. 055.213619 (Closed Sundays and Mondays and Saturdays in summer; call to be sure.) One of the best typical Florentine restaurants in the city. All dishes, from the abundant antipasti to the variety of pastas to the incredible meat, are made to perfection. Reservations strongly recommended at least one day in advance, preferably two. Prices are moderate. Cammillo Trattoria Borgo San Jacopo 57r +39.055.212427 (Closed Tuesdays and Wednesdays) At Camillo, the food is consistenly fantastic. The menu boasts a vast assortment of Tuscan specialties at reasonable prices. The professional, long-time servers know their trade well and obviously enjoy what they do. All in all, this is a great Florentine trattoria. Gusta Pizza Via Maggio 46r +39.055.285068 (Closed Mondays) Although the brothers who own this Neapolitan pizzeria are from Calabria, they have the art of pizza making down to a science—crust and toppings are done to perfection.