44 Best Restaurants in Naples, Italy

Favored by meat eaters who can't abide another bite of bream, this cozy, dimly lit dining den is known for dishes such as tender carpaccio with fresh artichoke hearts. There are also excellent homemade pasta selections, including orecchiette with chickpeas or pappardelle al sugo di agnello (pasta with lamb sauce), but the highlights are the extravagant grilled meat plates. Finish up with a babà or slice of pastiera for dessert. The restaurant is very popular among locals, so reservations are recommended.

Overlooking the beach at the 15th-century Palazzo Donn'Anna, the Michelin-starred, three-level Palazzo Petrucci doesn't lack for dramatic seating options, including a lounge bar and a dining area that's practically on the beach, with a glass partition revealing the kitchens. Fortify yourself with a complimentary glass of Prosecco before agonizing between the à la carte offerings and one of the three menu degustazioni (from €90 to €150). A popular starter is mille-feuille of local mozzarella with raw prawns and vegetable sauce. The paccheri al impiedi (large tube pasta served standing on end) in a rich ricotta-and-meat sauce is an interesting twist on a regional classic. The interior is elegantly minimal; the culinary delights are anything but.

This fourth-generation fish shop run by brothers is also a trendy, if rough-and-ready, spot to enjoy a super-fresh but pricey seafood meal—including superb Neapolitan sushi—and cold wine while sitting on a buoy stool.

Named for Neapolitan character Pulcinella’s girlfriend, this restaurant is in the onetime oratory of the adjoining church, which became a sawmill in the early 20th century. The high tufo arches and period fittings have been maintained, and the pizzas and pasta dishes are first class—the owners grow much of the produce that's used on their farm in nearby Sant’Agata dei Goti.

Chic and charming Da Cicciotto corrals more than a few members of the city's fashionable set—if you dine here, there's a fair chance you'll find a Neapolitan count or off-duty film star enjoying this jewel with a tiny stone terrace that overlooks a pleasant anchorage. You can also opt for the large covered patio across the way and appreciate the outdoor setting at either lunch or dinner. Don't even bother with a menu—just start digging into the sublime antipasti, and go with the waiter's suggestions. Cicciotto sits at the end of the same long winding road that leads to the famed 'A Fenestella restaurant and shoreline.

Run by the Di Porzio family since 1916, Umberto is one of the city's classic restaurants, combining the poshness of its neighborhood, Chiaia, and the friendliness found in other parts of Naples. Try the paccheri d'o treddeta ("three-finger" pasta with octopus, tomato, olives, and capers), which bears the nickname of the original Umberto, who happened to be short a few digits. Owner Massimo and sisters Lorella and Roberta (Umberto's grandchildren) are all wine experts and oversee a fantastic cellar. Note that Umberto has been catering to diners with a gluten allergy, as well as to vegetarians, for years.

In the Neapolitan smorfia, a list of numbers used to analyze dreams (and play the lottery), "50" means bread, and kalò is the Greek for good. And good dough is on the menu here, with this airy pizzeria gaining accolades since opening in traffic-busy Piazza Sannazaro in 2014—the New York Times hailed the pizza among the best in Italy. Along with all the favorites, third-generation pizzaiolo Ciro Salvo’s creations include a selection of vegetable pizzas with locally sourced toppings including cabbage, pumpkin, tomatoes, mushrooms, olives, and capers. The wine list is worthy of the best restaurants, and there's a good range of beers.

Just off bustling Via Toledo on the basalti flagstones of a narrow Quartieri Spagnoli street, this small trattoria does superb-value, classic Neapolitan dishes. Take a seat at one of the small tables with checkered tablecloths and ask the amiable staff about the day's freshest seafood, meat, and vegetable dishes while taking in the atmospheric surroundings.

If you see a line of hungry-looking patrons between the funicular stations of Toledo and Chiaia, you'll know you are close to Pizzeria Acunzo. When ordering, note that there are few variations of the thickly crusted pizzas—after all, this establishment has been running for 60 years, and its tried-and-tested product is, as onetime diner Isabella Rossellini can confirm, fenomenale.

The dishes vary depending on what's fresh and available, and all the ingredients (and the wines) are organic at this vegan's and vegetarian's paradise in a leafy courtyard off Piazza Bellini. The grilled seitan or the fried pumpkin in late summer are good bets, but if you want to try a bit of everything that's currently on offer, the piatto unico (mixed plate) has up to seven concoctions.

Set on a corner of the chicly bohemian Piazza Bellini for more than 70 years, this staple Neapolitan restaurant is worth visiting just to observe the waiters, all of whom seem to have just stepped off the stage of a Neapolitan comedy. Although the neighborhood is a bit scruffy, this place proudly retains an old-world feel, with options that include a fine (if rather small) pizza and classic seafood dishes such as linguine al cartoccio (baked in paper) or con mezzo astice (a type of small lobster). Go up the narrow stairs to the spacious dining rooms, or squeeze in at one of the outside tables in summer.

On a rather dark side street in the scruffier section of the Centro Storico, this place is well worth seeking out for its old-style Neapolitan hospitality and the quality of its food and wine. It's run as a family affair, and everyone who comes here seems to know each other. The pasta with chickpeas is a must, and the baccalà fritto (fried salt cod) is a specialty. Backed up with a selection of wines from all over Italy, this place is a great value.

Just off Via Toledo, Ciro has been an obligatory entry on any list of the best of Neapolitan cooking (as opposed to cuisine) since 1930, when Toscanini and Pirandello used to eat here. Popular with business travelers, artists, and journalists, Ciro is famous for a variety of favorites, with an emphasis on rustic food, from very fine pizzas and justly famed versions of pasta e fagioli to the classic sartù—rice loaf first concocted by Baroque-era nuns—and the splendid pignatiello e vavella, shellfish soup. The menu, which includes gluten-free items, almost looks too large for all its items to actually be good, but the owners must be doing something right, as the place is often packed with Neapolitan regulars. The waiters are darling wherever you sit, but try to get a table upstairs, which has a more pleasant atmosphere.

In the 1954 film L'Oro di Napoli, Sofia Loren sold fried pizza from a basso (a street-level room), something Concettina Flessigno Oliva had already been doing since three years earlier. This is now one of Naples's most highly acclaimed pizzerias, and Oliva’s great-grandson's menu includes all the usual culprits as well as pizza wedges based on local in-season ingredients. Twenty-seven Pulcinella masks by renowned local artist Lello Esposito hang in the entrance, and a Nativity scene is perched over the proceedings in the long hall. Gluten-free pizzas are also available.

Despite its location on an unpromising-looking vicolo (alley) off the Riviera di Chiaia, this small restaurant has achieved cult status for its seafood platters. It's remarkable what owner--chef Renato can produce in his tiny kitchen—start with linguine alla Dora, laden with local seafood and fresh tomatoes, and perhaps follow up with grilled pezzogna (blue-spotted bream). Like many seafront restaurants, on busy nights, Da Dora has its own guitarist, who is often robustly accompanied by the kitchen staff.

You may recognize Da Michele from the movie Eat, Pray, Love, but for more than 140 years before Julia Roberts arrived, this place was a culinary reference point. Despite offering only four types of pizza—marinara (tomato, garlic, and oregano), Margherita (tomato, mozzarella, and basil), cosacca (tomato, pecorino, and basil), and marita (half marinara, half Margherita)—plus a small selection of drinks, it still manages to draw long lines. The low prices may have something to do with it, but the pizza itself suffers no rivals, so customers are good-humored while waiting. The sounds of the boisterous, joyous atmosphere and the aromas of yeast and wood smoke waft out onto the street; get a number at the door, and then hang outside until it's called.

Every pizzeria along Via dei Tribunali is worth the long wait—and trust us, all the good ones will be jam-packed—but just one can claim to have served a U.S. president: Bill Clinton enjoyed a Margherita here when the G8 was held in Naples in 1994. Today the superlative pizzaioli (pizza makers) turn out a wide array of pizzas, all to the utmost perfection. Skip the calorie-counting, and try the fritte, and you'll be pleasantly surprised with this mix of Neapolitan-style tempura featuring salami, sausage, broccoli, provola cheese, and more. If you want a table, bypass the lines outside (mainly for takeout) and walk right in.

Perched above a beach in Posillipo, near the end of a long winding side road, this landmark restaurant is associated with a bit of Neapolitan folklore—in the 19th century the owner's great-grandmother Carolina was one day standing at the window (fenestella in the local dialect) and was spotted by musician Salvatore Di Giacomo below, thus inspiring the Neapolitan folk song "Marechiaro." Today, the restaurant is straightforwardly traditional, with comfortable decor and the usual suspects on the menu.

There are a few restaurants called Sorbillo along Via dei Tribunali, but this one is world-renowned. Order the same thing the locals do, namely a basic Neapolitan pizza (try the unique pizza al pesto or the stunningly simple marinara, with just San Marzano tomatoes, wild garlic, and oregano) that's cooked to perfection by the third generation of pie makers who run the place. The pizzas are enormous, flopping over the edge of the plate onto the white marble tabletops. Be warned though, there is no booking system, and you'll have to line up for a while, but an entrepreneurial local on a nearby balcony often entertains the crowds with Neapolitan songs.

For a range of pizzas, pastas, and salads—and a spectacular view—head to this family-friendly pie palace on the seaside promenade, at the corner of Piazza Vittoria. Locally grown or produced peppers, olives, basil, prosciutto, ricotta, mozzarella, and other ingredients top a masterful wood-fired crust made with the lievito madre yeast starter. Nearly as tasty and just as tempting are such sinfully delicious snacks as the frittatina di pasta (a pasta frittata) and the potato croquettes. Enjoy them all, then walk along the Lungomare to digest. In good weather, there are few nicer places for people-watching and pizza eating than the outdoor patio here.

The first restaurant to open on the seafront, this elegant pizzeria has been an essential hangout for Naples's gilded youth since 1994. Offering 36 kinds of pizza—including classics with a modern twist and a gluten-free option—plus a fine selection of salads and an ample buffet, this makes a refreshing change from the more minimal pizzerie. Among the pizzas, try the salsiccia e friarielli (topped with sausage and broccoli rabe), carciofina (with cream of eggplant, smoked provola cheese, and pecorino), or the half-Margherita, half-calzone (stuffed pizza) Re di Napoli.

The nautical decor and menu brimming with seafood delicacies are apt at this restaurant in the picturesque Borgo Marinaro, with the Bay of Naples and Castel dell'Ovo nearby and Vesuvius in the background. Note, too, as you plan your feast—the schiaffoni with astice and pescatrice (large flat tube pasta with lobster and anglerfish) is a good bet—that this area was the site of a villa owned by Lucullus, a Roman aristocrat and general famous for dining lavishly. Try to leave room for the dolce of the day, perhaps tiramisu or pear cake with ricotta. If after one too many limoncellos you feel like crashing, book one of the bright, airy guest rooms in the hotel upstairs.

This stylish place has long been popular thanks to the innovative cuisine of master chef Diego Nuzzo. A bar, where salami and other glorious tidbits are served, runs the length of the restaurant, but, for the real deal, take a table and be pampered with subtle dishes such as insalata di aragosta e gamberi alla catalana (lobster and prawn salad garnished with citrus).

This innovative eatery offers a menu of fixed-price bowls such as the squisita (exquisite) with rice, octopus, hummus, and fennel or the vivace (lively) with seared tuna fillet, chopped hazelnuts, and three types of rice. The open kitchen looks over a large, high, communal table with stools, and outdoor seating overlooks the bustling Piazza Bellini.

This well-known trattoria–wineshop sees everyone from foodies to students and professors from the nearby university. The menu on the wall's blackboard changes daily, but there is always a good selection of pasta, meat, fish, and vegetable side dishes. Go for a plate of pasta e fagioli or octopus salad and fried anchovies with a carafe of a good local wine.

This restaurant's name translates roughly to "room of taste," but the tastes here are many and extend from the traditional to the gourmet and ultramodern. Start with the antipasto di pesce (seafood appetizer), experience the glory that is Naples in the gattò delle due Sicilie (cake of the two Sicilies; Sicilian eggplant with a cheese fondue and a pesto mustard), or bow to contemporary sensibilities with the menu vegetariano km zero (all local vegetables of the season). With its recycled chairs and tables and vintage-style ads outside, this place exhibits a strong but pleasing personality. The cheese-and-wine parlor downstairs has an easygoing ambience, while the room upstairs is more of a slow-food den.

As its name suggests, this gracious trattoria atop a flight of steps on a small side street near Naples's main university is popular with the artsy intelligentsia, but it manages to remain welcomingly low-key. Warmed with touches of wood, it prides itself on its fresh interpretations of Neapolitan classics, with excellent salami, mozzarella, and frittura appetizers, cabbage soup fragrant with good beef stock, and meat and fish grilled over wood. Desserts include Sicilian cannoli—crisp pastry tubes filled with dark chocolate mousse or ricotta cream. Finish your meal with a choice of liqueurs or Neapolitan moka coffee.

Opposite the Palazzo Croce, once the home of philosopher and historian Benedetto Croce, this is one of the city's most famous pizzerias, packed night after night. The young crowd heads down into the more boisterous basement, while the atmosphere upstairs is calmer and more congenial to conversation at standard decibel levels. On the ground floor you can watch the pizzaioli working the pizza dough, manipulating each pie as if it were a live creation. If it's not too cold there are tables outside on the pedestrian zone.

Just around the corner from the Borgo Marinaro and the Hotel Vesuvio, this famous restaurant and pizzeria offers up its delights in a cool white-and-blue room. Try the house specialty pizza Sant'Anastasia, with cherry tomatoes and lots of premium fior di latte cheese. A range of pasta, meat, and fish dishes is also available. A wide sidewalk and the partial pedestrianization of Via Santa Lucia make this a pleasant venue for alfresco dining in summer.