23 Best Restaurants in Lombardy and the Lakes, Italy

Find a table in the back of this central, cheerful restaurant before choosing local cured meats and cheeses to accompany your wine. A few versions of polenta, daily pastas, and other heartier dishes are also available; just save room for the desserts, which go well with the sweet wines.

Your palate will travel from the lakes (eel with leek) to the countryside (hay risotto) to the mountains (tripe), all from the comfort of your table, at this cozy stone-arched eatery tucked into Como's commercial district. Expect creative takes on Italian cuisine, like deconstructed ravioli, using both local and more exotic ingredients, best sampled with a tasting menu.

For an unforgettable dining experience, head to Sala Comacina (a 10-minute drive south of Tremezzo) and take a five-minute speedboat ride to Lake Como's only island, Isola Comacina. Here you'll be treated to the same set menu that's been served at La Locanda since 1947: veggie antipasti; thinly sliced prosciutto and bresaola; grilled trout; fried chicken with salad; Parmesan cheese sliced from an enormous wheel; oranges or peaches with ice cream; and brandied coffee set afire with a dramatic flourish, while charismatic owner Benvenuto Puricelli regales you with tales of the island's history. The views are phenomenal, the stories are fun, and the food is better than it needs to be. Work off your meal afterward by hiking around the tranquil island.

This aesthetically simple bistro-style restaurant, spruced up with modern art, draws a mainly local crowd for some of the most inventive food creations and presentation in the Como region. The imaginative Asian-inspired cuisine (think steamed partridge with smoked eel butter), makes good use of local ingredients like lake fish, and the frequently changing surprise five-, seven-, or twelve-course tasting menus are a particular delight, especially when paired with the mostly natural wines on offer.

When tourist-heavy Bellagio starts to wear you down, seek respite at this charming restaurant located on the town’s very northernmost point, a scenic 10-minute walk from the center, with amazing lake views of Varenna to the north and Tremezzo to the west. As you might expect, the menu is heavy on lake fish; although the dishes aren't innovative, they're fresh and well prepared, and the view makes the experience even better. The antipasto di lago (mixed fish platter) and patè di pesce (fish pâté) make great starters; among mains, the baked lasagna and the gnocchi with cream and Gorgonzola sauce get rave reviews. End the meal right, with a freshly made cake or tiramisu.

The nondescript exterior of this buzzy eatery off one of Stresa's main streets belies its chic, stylish interior. Dishes made with seasonal ingredients dominate the menu, but, no matter the season, you'll find local lake fish, both marinated and panfried, as well as a solid list of wines from throughout the region and across Italy.

Dining in this bright, airy space feels like enjoying a meal in a fabulous friend’s modern lake cottage—if the friend had floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking Lake Garda and a top-notch chef on hand. For an adventure in flavors from across the country, choose from two tasting menus (either "the classics" or one with “surprise” dishes chosen by the chef) and complement your meal with Italian or international wines in four- or five-glass pairings. 

Heralded as one of Italy's classic gourmet restaurants, Ambasciata (Italian for "embassy") emphasizes elegance in tiny Quistello, 20 km (12 miles) southeast of Mantua. Those who are willing to make the trek (and pay the bill) can order à la carte or opt for the tasting menu (from €80) with an ever-changing array of traditionally inspired creations, such as the famed tortelli di zucca (pumpkin tortelli with pumpkin cream and Parmigiano-Reggiano), or mains like guinea fowl with mostarda (a sweet-and-sour mustard from Mantua), and roast pigeon with 25-year reserve balsamic vinegar.

The vaulted ceilings of this popular trattoria on the upper town's main street are marked with ancient graffiti, created by (patiently) holding candles to the stone overhead. The house specialties are simple but tasty: polenta taragna (with buckwheat flour) cooked with butter and cheese and served with rabbit, chicken, or sliced mushrooms with oil, garlic, and parsley. Ask and you'll receive the perfect wine pairing for your meal.

Reservations are a good idea for this longtime favorite in the hills above Cernobbio. The lake view is splendid, and specialties include homemade pastas and fish dishes with a dash of international flair.

“The Garden" has an expansive patio that's a shady respite from the summer sun. Though mainly known for its pizza, the restaurant also has an extensive menu of fish and meat dishes. You can also stay the night in one of 12 basic rooms.

Next to the castle and tucked into three charming rooms, this elegant, intimate restaurant is considered by many to be Sirmione's finest. Its creative tasting menus feature an appealing mix of fish (from the lake or the sea), meat, and vegetarian dishes, all accompanied by a good choice of wines.

This osteria looks to the 16th century for culinary inspiration, with excellent homemade salami and two popular primi—gnocchi vecchia Cremona (stuffed with sausage and baked with poppy seeds, sesame, and Parmigiano-Reggiano) and marubini Cremonesi ai tre brodi (stuffed meat ravioli in broth)—made according to time-tested recipes. Order the tiramisu and an accompanying dessert wine for a perfect finish.

This rustic trattoria is more sophisticated than it first appears: not only does it serve local dishes with novel twists, but it also has an extensive wine cellar. Capesante scottate con salse ai diversi sapori (seared scallops with different sauces) and palette di piccoli campioni di lago e di mare (mixed lake and sea fish) are worthy introductions to regional delights.

Right next to the Cernobbio ferry stop, this pretty restaurant offers a nice selection of local wines and, whenever possible, uses local ingredients in its pizza, pasta, fish, and meat dishes. Though the modern gray interior is pleasant, try for a table on the terrace, and note that, in season, you can rent a sun bed and use the pools (one for adults and one for kids) before or after your meal.

Amid sophisticated Art Nouveau surroundings, you can order creative versions of traditional Lombard cuisine. All fish dishes are done with verve, as are the lasagnette di pasta fresca alla robiola spinaci (lasagna with soft cheese and spinach), nocette d'agnello (noisette of lamb), and veal-shank stew, which earned the restaurant a Michelin star in 2019.

Walk through a Japanese garden off a country road east of Riva del Garda to enter multiple-Michelin-star-awarded chef Peter Brunel's light-filled, turquoise velvet-chaired restaurant. Each of the dozen sleek white tables are decorated with a unique sculpture, and jazz music sets the tone. Navy-suited waitstaff suggest selecting an aperitif from the more than 700-label cantina and vast local spirits list (including nonalcoholic gin and Campari), to ease into your meal. In the black-and-white-tiled open kitchen (inspired by poet Gabriele d'Annunzio's Gardone Riviera home) sample the chef's signature dish, Memory of Lofoten, inspired by outdoor stockfish curing in Norway; marinated anchovies perch on a grissini (breadsticks) line, across a sea of piquillo peppers, foamy salt water, and herring eggs. Multiple tasting menus, including vegetarian, easily accommodate dietary restrictions and are the best way to try both seasonal and iconic dishes. For dessert, in-season fruit brulées with chocolate and ricotta cream pair well with coffee brewed however you'd like—from espresso to French press to Chemex.

Freshwater fish is the specialty at this simple, popular restaurant in Sirmione's historic center. Try the grilled trout with a bottle of local white, and then settle your meal with a walk in the nearby park.

A lovely stop for a drink or a romantic dinner, this 16th-century castle is right on a lake in Sarche, about 20 km (12 miles) north of Riva toward Trento. Dishes highlight seasonal local ingredients, including mountain cheeses, salmon, trout, duck, and deer. The helpful servers can recommend the perfect Trentino wine to wash it all down.

A former 17th-century convent is now a lively enoteca run by Alberto and Catia Rivetti, offering more than 600 wines, as well as spirits and beers—all from northern Italy. Old and new merge in this warm and friendly spot with sage and rose walls, an original decorative ceiling, and a hallway with an automatic dispenser with more than 30 wines available on demand—get up from your seat to taste as many wines as you'd like using a prepaid card. To accompany your wine, try lake fish with fried sage, classic Lombard mondeghili della nonna (fried veal meat balls), or baccalà with polenta chips and tomato confit. Leave room for dessert, such as tiramisu, or Catia's lime cheesecake with seasonal fruit, which sometimes makes an appearance on the menu. 

This intimate restaurant near Como's historic center serves full-flavored modern Italian food, which you can sample in six- or eight-course seasonal tasting menus, complete with wine pairings if you'd like. The spartan interior here is beside the point; you'll be focused on the well-presented dishes, guided by youthful servers who thoughtfully describe each course. The playful menu might include red shrimp tartare with avocado and fried squid, eggplant ravioli with tomato coulis and Parmesan mousse, or pork loin with roasted pepper cream, spinach, and endive. The place is popular with both tourists and locals, so reservations are a good idea.

In a town with an overabundance of touristy pizza and pasta places, this unassumingly modern family-run bistro raises the bar. Although the shabby-chic decor and friendly service entice, the real draw is the short but smart menu of creative Italian dishes and vegetarian options. Start with the antipasto misto di Lago (variety of lake fish) followed by a homemade gnocchi or tagliolini, or opt for a heartier main like the pork fillet with cabbage and bacon. Just make sure to leave room for dessert, like the birramisù, a take on tiramisu soaked in beer, wine, coffee, and grappa. 

The wine list at this romantic but informal vineria (wine bar) is exceptional—both by the glass and by the bottle—and there's also an array of flavorful foods, from snacks to sumptuous full-course meals typical of the region. The atmosphere is warm and charming, harking back more than 150 years to when the spot was first established in Bergamo as a lively meeting place.