15 Best Restaurants in The Veneto and Friuli–Venezia Giulia, Italy

This side-street eatery, lined with old wood paneling and decked out with musical instruments, serves traditional Veronese classics, like bigoli (thick whole wheat spaghetti) with donkey ragù and pastissada con polenta (horse-meat stew with polenta). Don't be deterred by the unconventional meats—they're tender and delicious, and this is probably the best place in town to sample them. This first-rate home cooking is reasonably priced and served by helpful, efficient staff. It's popular, so arrive early. Reservations are not always taken.

In this cozy and atmospheric cross between a wine bar and a restaurant, you can put together a fabulous, inexpensive dinner from various classic dishes from all over Italy. Portions are small, but prices are reasonable—just follow the local custom and order a selection, perhaps starting with fresh burrata (mozzarella's creamier cousin) with tomatoes, or a selection of prosciutti or salami. Don't pass up the house specialty: lasagna—there are several kinds on the menu. Main courses are limited, but they include a savory Veneto stew with polenta.

A fabulous garden setting and warm yet unfussy country-style dining rooms elevate this family-run restaurant, renowned for Nino Baggio's elegant creative take on traditional cuisine. This is the finest restaurant in Asolo, and the prix-fixe menu (you can also order à la carte) delivers one of the best-value top-quality dining options in the Veneto.

This cozy 19th-century locale storico (historic hostelry) is steeped in Vicentina atmosphere, from the bar serving local wines and sopressa (premium salami) to the intimate dark-wood restaurant serving hearty classics. Grab a table out back for a sit-down meal of robust dishes like bigoli (thick, egg-enriched spaghetti) with duck, spaghetti with baccalà (cod), and, in spring, risi e bisi (rice with peas). Desserts include fruit tarts and the ubiquitous tiramisu.

An easy trip just outside town, this landmark trattoria—serving Triestino food with Slovene, Hungarian, and Austrian accents—has been in business since 1865. Sit by the dining room fire or relax on a huge terrace with a pergola, watching the sun set as you tuck into rich soups and roasts spiced with rosemary, thyme, and sweet paprika. Portions tend to be small, so if you're hungry, order both a first and second course, as well as an antipasto.

At this rustic, wood-rich family-style osteria, it's worth giving the robust local specialties, such as tripe, snails, or stewed game, a go—many of them served with polenta. Less adventurous diners can go for other homey options, such as goulash, polenta with cheese and mushrooms, or one of Bacaro's open-face sandwiches, generously topped with fresh salami, speck, or other cold cuts. Although the restaurant caters to tourists—as is the case with most eateries in Asolo—the food here is better than average.

This little old brick trattoria on a beguiling piazza with views of the Santa Maria Maggiore church is a favorite among locals and tourists, who flock to its cozy wood-trimmed interior. The menu changes daily but always features well-executed versions of simple local dishes, from risottos and pastas to a variety of seafood and meat dishes.

Serving delicious and generous portions of traditional Triestino buffet fare, such as boiled pork and sausages with savory sauerkraut, Siora Rosa is a bit more comfortable than many buffets. In addition to ample seating in the simple dining room, there are tables outside for when the weather is good. The restaurant is frequented mainly by Triestini, including students and faculty from the nearby university. You may be the only tourist in the place, but the helpful staff generally speak English.  This buffet closes for a brief time between lunch and dinner.

Gastronomically adventurous diners who visit this quirky restaurant filled with stylish midcentury furnishings will find cucina povera (peasant food) given an inventive twist. The chef is a passionate Slow Food champion, so expect local and seasonal meat and vegetables, as well as excellent seafood and an extensive wine list from Italy and farther afield.

This mix between a traditional bacaro (wine bar) and an osteria is a local institution, opened in 1922. Stand at the bar with a cross section of Padovano society, from construction workers to professors, and peruse the reasonably priced menu of simple casalinga (home-cooked dishes), plus salads and a selection of cheeses. Portions are ample, and no one will look askance if you don't order the full meal. The place is packed with loyal regulars at lunchtime, so come early or expect a wait, and don't expect to have an intimate conversation.

Hidden halfway up the hill to the Castello di San Giusto, in what the Triestini call Zità Vecia (Old City), this informal little restaurant specializes in simply prepared seafood. Amid whitewashed wooden walls and nautical ephemera, you can sample the freshest catches—bluefish, sardines, mackerel, mussels, and squid—accompanied by salad, potatoes, polenta, and house wine. The consistently tasty dishes, especially the fish soup and the sardoni in savor (large sardines with raisins, pine nuts, and caramelized onions), show what a talented chef can do on a limited budget.

Dine in the atmospheric arcaded canal-side vicolo on Odeon's superb-value pasta, meat, and seafood dishes, or amid the columns in the high-ceilinged salone. As befits the intriguing historic setting and interiors, the menu showcases traditional Trevisano ingredients with the occasional flavorsome twist. 

Located in the heart of what used to be Padua's Jewish ghetto, this friendly trattoria serves almost exclusively traditional Veneto dishes, and it does so with refinement and care. Everything from the well-crafted dishes to the unfussy ship's dining cabin–like decor and elegant plates reflect decades of Padovano hospitality. The liver and onions is extraordinarily tender, and even the accompanying polenta is grilled to perfection. The desserts are nothing to scoff at, either. This tiny place fills up quickly, so reservations are a must.

Many of Vicenza's wealthier residents spend at least part of the summer in the Alps to escape the heat, and the dishes of this popular and friendly trattoria reflect the hearty Alpine influences on local cuisine. The house specialty, stinco di maiale al forno (roast pork shank), is wonderfully fragrant, with herbs and aromatic vegetables. Game dishes include venison with blueberries, and guinea fowl roasted with white grapes.

Wood-paneled and with a 1930s-style interior, this bustling trattoria has a wholesome menu based on local Veneto cooking. The spin in the restaurant's name refers to the spine of the baccalà, one of several justly famous specialties (served without the titular spine); also try the sopa coada, a pigeon-and-bread soup.  Reservations are essential, even for lunch, since the word is out that this is the best value in town.