The Food of Cinque Terre

Sandwiched, or panini-ed, between the Ligurian Sea and the Apennine Mountains are the 5 small medieval villages of Cinque Terre. Monterosso, Vernazza, Corniglia, Manarola, and Riomaggiore make up this Italian coast. Cinque Terre feels worlds away from Milan but it only takes a 3 hour train trip to reach. My girlfriend and I spent 3 days hiking, swimming, eating and exploring our way through this region of Italy.

This article will give you tips for eating your way through the towns of Cinque Terre. 

Too Many Options

Our culinary experience in Cinque Terre was incredible. That being said, we did encounter some less-than-stellar meals. We could have avoided these mistakes by doing more research on fuller stomachs. The restaurants, focaccerias, and gelaterias that we chose based on Google reviews rarely steered us wrong. The restaurants we found with 4 Google stars and up all met the expectations that one has for Italian food. Still, there were a plethora of dissapointing food stalls that were full of people. The towns of Cinque Terre are small and can become crowded during the lunch rush hours, this makes decisions of where to eat based on traffic alone difficult. 

The Must Eats

There are some must eat and drink items in Cinque Terre. Being a sea side collection of towns, it should be obvious that the seafood in this area is amazing. Every fancy restaurant has catch of the day seafood specials, but my favorite meal was much more affordable. Fritto Misto, or “mixed fry” is a combination of lightly fried seafoods, vegetables and sometimes fries. It is served wrapped in a cone of paper with salt and a lemon wedge. You can also choose 1 type of seafood, of which I prefer anchovy. 

Historically, the people that settled in the hills of Cinque Terre were not fishermen, they were farmers. Set foot in any of the five towns of Cinque Terre and you will be surrounded by terraced hills of olives, grapes and lemons. When you have a chance to eat something made with lemon, eat it! We had locally made lemon soda, lemon focaccia, lemon gelato, lemon croissants, lemonade, limoncello, lemon pastries, and lemon squirted on fried seafood. 

Liguarian Specialties

Basil based pesto, or pesto Genovese, has become synonymous with Italy. It was created in the Ligurian region of Italy, an area that includes Cinque Terre. This makes pesto a must eat at any restaurant, especially combined with a hand made pasta!

A pleasant surprise that I encountered while stopping by a focacceria in Manarola was farinata. While I thought I was ordering a slice of pizza, I actually paid for a savory chickpea pancake. Boy was I happy about the mistake. Farinata, like pesto, also originated in the Ligurian region of Italy. It’s a common street food with a mysterious origin story. I ordered the Farinata con Cipolle, which is a chickpea pancake with onions added to the batter.

Our Favorite Meals

Cinque Terre is known for its wine across the region. It’s also known for salted anchovies , farinata, pesto genovese, olive oil and the abundance of locally grown produce. Here is a list of our favorite restaurants and the meals we ate there, in no particular order:

Focacceria A Pie de Campo

This restaurant is known for its focaccia “pizza” that serves 2. It is going to be the best focaccia that I eat for the rest of my life. We ordered the lard, pecorino, and honey focaccia and the potato, sausage from pignone, and rosemary focaccia. The restaurant has only outdoor seating on a covered patio and beneath a grove of lemon trees. The rosemary was picked from the garden in front of our table. The lemonade was made from lemons above my head! Reservations by phone are necessary. 

Farm Shop – Azienda Agricola Sentiero Azzurro Parco Nazionale delle Cinque Terre 

This shop and outdoor space is on the blue trail between Vernazza and Corniglia. The blue trail is a walking path that connects all five towns of Cinque Terre. It’s worth the hike if you have a day or two to spare. The farmers market has fresh juice, smoothies, wine and other snacks from local farmers. You won’t find a better oasis on a trail in your life. I got to squeeze my own oranges for juice as a much needed pick me up.

Il Porticciolo 

This restaurant serves the best Fritto Misto in Manarola. It is also the earliest place open serving pastries and coffee in the morning. There are two locations for this restaurant on either side of the street. One is a sit down venue, while the other is more casual. The latter is the side that serves the Fristo Misto and pastries. I had the mixed fish basket and the anchovy basket as well as several cappuccinos and croissants during our stay.

Da Aristide

The best breakfast and coffee drinks in Manarola can be found at Da Aristide. They are the only restaurant in Cinque Terre that serves an “American breakfast” with bacon and eggs. They also seem to be the only restaurant in Manarola serving any kind of protein for breakfast before 10am. We had 10+ cappuccinos, dozens of pastries, and the American breakfast.

Gelataria Yogurteria Crepes E Granite

INCREDIBLE gelato in Riomaggiore and my second favorite gelato that I had during my entire trip in Italy. The ricotta fig and honey or the coffee flavors were my favorite.

Pan & Pumate

Solid and quick stop focaccia shop in Manarola with several choices of focaccia and toppings to choose from. This is where I discovered farinata by accident.

Tratoria dal Billy

This was by far the best meal we had while in Cinque Terre, and Italy as a whole. This restaurant overlooks the town and sea of Manarola and serves the freshest seafood, pasta, and other Ligurian classics. This is a great date night spot! Although it’s on the more expensive side for the area, it is well worth the price. We enjoyed the tuna tartar special, the caprese salad, the grilled Swordfish special, the pesto pasta, and tiramisu for dessert. Reservations by phone are a must! If you can’t reach the restaurant by phone, make a reservation in person. There are only 2 seating times, 5:30 and 9:30.

Bar Pan e Vin

This deli in Corniglia didn’t have the best service but the focaccia sandwiches were affordable, quick and good. We had the pesto sándwich, the salami sandwich, and ice cold lemon sodas. There is some inside seating but the shop is small so take your food to go.

Alberto Gelateria

This was my favorite gelateria in all of Italy. This store in Corniglia has a bohemian vibe and uses its own herb garden to create some of the flavors. You must try the basil gelato and the lemon granita (basically a lemon slushy). These two make a stunning bite for bite combo. 

Bottega del Frito

This small walk up stall next to the train station in Monteresso has the best fried anchovies in Cinque Terre. Monteresso specializes in anchovies and Cinque Terre specializes in the Fritto Misto. This makes Bottega a winning combination. Bottega is pricier than other fried fish stalls but it’s worth the stop.  

Poche Musse

This is the best gelateria in Manarola. It’s located right next to the ramp into the lower part of town. The dark chocolate flavor is the best and tastes just like brownie batter.  

Batti Batti

This was the first Fritto Misto restaurant I found in Cinque Terre that had fried whole shrimp. The shell and head were still on, similar to soft shell crab. This might turn some people off but I loved it! The calamari and sardine cones were also very good. This shop is located in central Vernazza.

If you are interested in visiting Cinque Terre, my team at Endura Travel specializes in planning and booking vacations. To learn more about what we offer click here.