Geppy’s Bistrot

in ,

In the heart of Ventimiglia, just steps from the station, Geppy’s Bistrot is an intimate and stylish spot with modern, elegant décor and a warm, welcoming atmosphere. The cuisine is rooted in local tradition but enriched with creative flair, with a focus on ultra-fresh fish and original preparations. Popular at lunchtime for its quick, simple dishes, in the evening the menu becomes more refined, often paired with live music. Starters (13-16 €) include Brandacujun di stocco, seared octopus with potato cream, and stuffed anchovies. Among the primi (14-18 €), homemade meat ravioli and candele spaghetti aglio, olio e peperoncino with bottarga. In the secondi (14-20 €), seafood shines with fried calamari and shrimp, grilled fish with vegetables, and oven-baked sea bream fillet. Meat lovers can enjoy vitello tonnato alla piemontese or sliced beef with roasted potatoes. Desserts are a highlight: from delizia di cachi e pistacchio to Sacher cake. Excellent value for money, attentive service, and a well-stocked wine list, featuring both local and national labels. Reservation recommended.

Osteria della Salute

in ,

In the centre of Riva Ligure right in Piazza G. Matteotti, you will find the Osteria della Salute, an ideal place to enjoy good, straightforward seafood cuisine at honest prices with just the right amount. Friendly welcome and fast service. Outside in fine weather there is a large dehor for eating out for lunch and dinner. On the a la carte menu, with a strong seafood inspiration, the starters include tuna tartare with burrata, brandacujun (stockfish served with potatoes, pine nuts and oil), mussels alla marinara and breaded anchovies (7 to 10 €) or aubergine parmigiana (6, 5 €) In the first courses we mention the classic spaghetti with clams and steamed cherry tomatoes or with botargo and toasted breadcrumbs or the homemade trenette with squid tentacles, trombette and burrata (9 to 12 €). For the main courses, there is a wide choice between the typical fried squid, paranza and vegetables and the stockfish Ligurian style or the seared tuna and the millefeuille of cod, or for those who prefer meat, the rabbit with olives of the western Ligurian tradition (all main courses from 10 to 12 €). The first and second courses are brought to the table in the classic cooking pans, a practical method as it gives everyone the opportunity to taste the various courses and ensures that feeling of home cooking that we sometimes feel the need for.

Casa Buono

in ,

Antonio Buono and his wife Valentina’s restaurant was awarded a star in the prestigious Michelin guide in 2023. Amply deserved for the very high quality of the products, many from the family garden and trusted suppliers. The ambience is modern and refined with an open kitchen. Thanks also to his important experience with the multi-starred Mauro Colagreco, he has created his own cooking style and philosophy. The menu changes daily precisely because it depends on what is available at the time. There are two menus on offer: Sea and Vegetable Garden at 100 euro and Sea, Vegetable Garden and Land at 125 euro, excluding drinks, comprising four welcome snacks, two starters, a first course, a second course, pre-dessert, dessert and final pastries. Dishes include dentex tartare, trout roe and anchovy colatura, Sanremo red prawn beat with cream and herring pearls, and scallop gnocchi with broccoli and cuttlefish. Alpine cheeses from the Roya valley. To end on a sweet note, the white chocolate, toffee and almond topinambur, the orange blossom water spumone and the warm madeleine with chef’s lemon cream. A great taste experience that will make you appreciate the products of a rich territory proposed with skill and creativity.

Hostaria Besugo

in ,

In Calata Cuneo, an attractive area of the city, Alessandra and Marco, the friendly owners, offer a genuine local seasonal cuisine. In addition to the beautiful dehors overlooking the port, the restaurant has modern indoor rooms with stone walls and vaulted ceilings. The full view oven allows you to watch pizza makers baking focaccia, pinsa and farinata, both at lunch and dinner. You can taste real delicacies such as the pinsa with pumpkin flowers, anchovies and burrata and a wide variety of pizzas with unusual names. Among the starters we find many typical Ligurian dishes such as panissa, cod fritters, Brandacujun meatballs, octopus salad, artichokes and fried anchovies, fresh fish tartare (from 7 to 18 €). Among the first courses we find fresh homemade pastas such as pansoti with walnut sauce, octopus sauce gnocchi, pesto trenette served in a parmesan wafer (from 14 to 18 €). To try the Burrida (fish soup) and the cuttlefish zimino with beans. Among the second courses fried and grilled fresh fish, sautéed cuttlefish, sesame-crusted tuna tataki (from 14 to 24 €). You also must try tasty meat dishes such as the rostelle (grilled skewers of sheep meat) or fillet steak Black Angus. Good choice of desserts: the stroscia served with a delicate mascarpone cream and an delicious meringue. Good choice of wines. The service is attentive and friendly. Excellent quality-price ratio.

Trattoria del mare Il PesceMatto

in ,

In the Prino village of Porto Maurizio, with its characteristic pastel-colored houses overlooking the sea, we find this restaurant, which offers genuine and tasty fish cuisine. The welcome of the patron Massimo is always friendly and kind. In the nice newspaper style menu, we find descriptions of the dishes. The tasting menu consists of 5 appetizers, 1 first, 2 seconds, dessert, house wine, water and coffee for € 38.00. Among the starters we mention the tuna and burrata tartare dressed with Chin’oro oil, Taggiasca olive oil worked with Savona chinotto (€ 10) and octopus stuffed with potatoes and Tropea onion compote (€ 12). In the first courses of fresh pasta prepared by the chef we find the “linguine della Regina” with a mixed sea food and a light gratin (€ 15), the mezze manicures with cod and burrata pulp (€ 13) and the house gnocchi with octopus ragù (13,50 €). In the second courses the proposal is an original “orizzontale” selection of mixed fried fish and vegetables served on a wooden cutting board, cm. 30 to 16 €, up to 100 cm. for 30 €, or the triumph of grilled fish (25 €). Do not miss the traditional Ligurian rabbit (12 €). To finish the homemade desserts served with a bucket of whipped cream. Good selection of wines, with a preference for local labels.

Ristorante Cadò

in ,

The old hotel of the village, after a modern renovation has become a cozy restaurant. Ilaria and Antonio with courage and passion have reopened the business which closed for more than 30 years. The highly experienced chef, Giuliano Tommasini is their partner in this venture. You can try the “Cucina bianca” recipes, typical of the upper Arroscia valley based on herbs and vegetables, meats and pastry cheeses, homemade pasta with basic, but nutritious dressing, seasonal fruits and simple but tasty desserts. Cadó, which is the dialect name of Lavender, uses almost exclusively local ingredients, cooked following traditional recipes, with a touch of modernity. Edible servatic herbs become protagonists in the Rajora vegetable pie receipe (a must try),in cakes, pies and frisceu doughnuts. Among the first courses the peculiar Turle ravioli and the typical dish “Streppa and Caccia Là”, a product of alpine grazing. Meat from a local farm are predominant in the second courses. Cheese come from skillful local producers. Cakes are simple but tasty: Lavender cake deserves a special mention. The food is certainly worth stopping here to eat. Excellent value for money: a full meal costs on average 30 €. For theme nights the prices vary, but on average always below 50 €.

Ristorante Buona Vita

in ,

The restaurant is located in a small village in the hinterland with a beautiful historic center and an exciting sea view. Wooden furniture give the vintage style interior room, a rustic and informal look, while the original lights and the large stone fireplace helped to embellish it. In the summer you can enjoy a wonderful view on the rooftop while you eat. Chef Federico Pinasco’s proposal includes local seasonal dishes. The menu includes 4 appetizers (12 €), 4 first courses (15 €), 4 seconds (15 to 35 €) and 4 desserts (7€). Among the appetisers you can try veal with tuna sauce, the traditional Brandacujun, Catalan style octopus and Parmigiana. Among the first courses we find Pansotti pasta with walnut sauce, Mandilli with pesto and purple prawns and Spaghetti with rabbit sauce. Among the seconds: the crunchy and light mixed fried of calamari, anchovies and prawns; grilled calamari with zucchini and the Secreto Iberico, a fine pork fillet for real gourmets. Do not miss the exquisite desserts: Meringue with fresh fruit and custard, Bavarian pistachio, white chocolate and red berries, and the Stroscia (sweet chubby cracker), a typical cake of the Imperia hinterland. The restaurant’s cellar offers a selection of local labels and other regions served with a reasonable top-up.

Ristorante la Kambusa

in ,

A historic place known by lovers of good food overlooking the sea and the beaches. Here Gianni welcomes customers with friendliness and competence and the chef Domenico prepares delicious dishes. In the internal rooms it is a treat having a fine dinner and enjoying the freshest fish. The menu is designed according the availability of fishing and garden products, combining sea and land specialties. Among the appetizers the lightly steamed prawns of Sanremo and the lemon ravioli with raw sea bass, perfectly enhance the aromas and flavors of the sea and the land. The homemade fresh and stuffed pasta is a strong point of the cuisine because it comes from Gianni’s family laboratory, the Prota di Taggia pasta factory. There is also a rich selection of cheeses, and, at the end of the meal, eighteen desserts are recommended every day, including traditional cakes, such as Stroscia, and creative dishes such as the reinterpretation of the Renette apple pie. The wine list with over 200 well-selected labels is able to satisfy every request and has a significant presence of local labels. The price from 40 to 60 € is correct in relation to the quality of the dishes offered and the raw materials used.

Ristorante Locanda La Favorita

in ,

In a charming corner of the Nervia Valley, surrounded by olive trees, mimosas and aromatic herbs, here in the summer you can dine outside on the panoramic terrace. The interior rooms are frescoed with drawings of herbs and flowers, and an image of Apricale, like the one enjoyed from the large windows, warmed in winter by the large fireplace. One room is dedicated to fairy tale characters and with child-friendly furnishings. The menu proposed for € 35 includes the specialties of the inland cuisine. We start with the appetizers, from the typical Barbagiuai, fried ravioli stuffed with pumpkin, rice and cheese, to the green cake, from Sardenaira to stuffed vegetables. Do not miss the Ravioli with borage, hand-made as the exquisite tagliatelle mixed with red wine, olive paté, flour and eggs, served with meat sauce or tomato sauce. The second is made up of grilled meat, tagliata, lamb and sausage, with vegetables from the seasonal garden. The dessert is a must-see sight, the zabaglione mounted by hand in the copper pot is served at the table: it has the color of gold and an inviting scent, accompanied by pansarole, the traditional Apricale lies. Wines with local proposals and an always warm and kind welcome. In the inn there are also 6 beautiful rooms where you can stay overnight.

Senese

in ,

Giovanni Senese, although young, has great experience in the art of pizza and in the variegated world of doughs and flours. Born in Naples, after working experiences around the world, he stopped in Sanremo and opened his modern and welcoming restaurant in 2020, one step away from the cycle path and the sea. The attention to raw materials is very high. He personally grows vegetables and aromatic plants in his synergistic garden. Try the special pizzas, such as “il mio orto sinergico” (€ 14), which follows the rhythm of the seasons, or “il carciofo incontra il cacio e il pepe” (artichoke meets cheese and pepper) (€ 18) or “Barbaresca” with velvety purple potatoes and strips of Chianina sirloin (€ 16.5). Those who love traditional flavors can choose the classics of the Neapolitan tradition (from € 5.5 upwards). Not only pizzas, however, you can taste the wonderful Neapolitan whims (salty pastry dough), fried for all tastes, or the “ cono del pizzaiolo”, filled pizza shaped like an ice-cream cone according to Giovanni’s creativity. There is no shortage of creative dishes among first and second courses. To finish, typical sweets such as classic babà or with cream, pastiera and lemon delights. The list of extra virgin olive oils is also interesting. Good selection of craft beers and good choice of wines, with a preference for Ligurian labels.