18 Best Restaurants in The Dolomites, Italy

Just off of the Strada del Vino (Wine Road), this charming eatery and wine bar lets you indulge in seasonal dishes while sampling some of the biodynamic wines produced by one of the Trentino area’s most well-known vintners. When the weather’s nice, dining in the pretty courtyard among lemon trees, with mountaintops visible just behind, really lives up to the “paradise” name.

Reinhold Messner's restored farmhouse, which is below Castel Juval, holds an old-style restaurant serving traditional local dishes. Not to be missed are the smoked hams and flavorful cheeses provided by the farm outside; they are well paired with the estate's Castel Juval wine.

The sterile surroundings of this restaurant, a short walk from Via dei Portici, belie its culinary delights—namely, rustic regional dishes reenergized and prepared with precision. Three-, five-, and seven-course tasting menus change according to the chef's whim and the season, but they usually include a modernized vitello tonnato (veal with tuna sauce), delightful homemade pasta and dumplings, and decadent meat dishes such as veal stewed in Lagrein, the area's renowned red wine; vegetarian options are also available.

Ask locals where they like to dine out, and odds are they'll tell you Vögele, one of the area's oldest inns, where the menu features Tyrolean standards such as canederli (bread dumplings) with speck and venison. The classic wood-paneled dining room on the ground level is often packed, but don't despair—the restaurant has two additional floors.

Come for the beer—several varieties are brewed in-house and served in this charismatic beer hall—and stay for the meals that include wursts, meat and cheese platters, pizzas, and huge salads. Smaller wood-paneled dining rooms and a summer terrace allow for more peaceful dining.

Although most of Madonna's visitors dine at resort hotels, Italians consider an on-mountain meal in a remote, rustic refuge like this one to be an indispensable part of a proper ski week. You can drive or hike up in summer months, but in winter, you ski, snowshoe, or are collected by a Sno-Cat and ferried 10 minutes up the slopes; once there, you'll sit down to grill your own meats and vegetables over stone griddles.  You must call in advance to reserve a table and arrange transportation. 

Fried white würstel (sausage), sauerkraut, and grilled ribs complement the excellent home-brewed Austrian-style pilsner and wheat beer at this bustling pub-restaurant. Hopfen & Co. attracts Bolzano's students, young professionals, and tourists alike.

These Tirolean-style wood-paneled dining rooms near the Olympic ice-skating rink are a Cortina institution. Join the local clientele in sampling terrific pizza along with house specialties such as pasta with pork, radicchio, and ricotta, and ravioli with beetroot.

For fresh, properly cooked regional food, this malga (Alpine hut) with great mountain views can't be beat—just make a reservation, especially in winter, when you must be transported over on a snowmobile by day and a shuttle at night (in summer, you can drive all the way). Salamis and cheeses are made on-site, and the bar serves both commercial and homemade grappas, many of which are brewed with local herbs; also try some capriolo (mountain goat stew), polenta, skitz (grilled cheese that doesn't melt), or fresh local mushrooms.

Located on a nondescript side street, this friendly family-run trattoria serves tasty regional dishes like rufioi (homemade ravioli stuffed with savoy cabbage) along with a fine selection of pizza. The wine list is also dominated by regional selections, which pair well with items on the menu.

What started out as a Tyrolean tavern around the time of the Council of Trent is today an intimate restaurant that adeptly serves superb innovative dishes, using both local and international ingredients. The menu changes throughout the year and includes pasta such as gnocchi with rabbit and marinated trout with escarole and pine nuts.

Trento's oldest trattoria (it's the descendant of a 14th-century tavern) remains one of its most popular lunch spots. Locals crowd into a simple, modern dining room to enjoy regional specialties like gnocchi with vegetables and baccalà (salt cod); an impressive (and inexpensive) selection of local wines is available.

A spacious, comfortable dining room near Via dei Portici is a dependable favorite with locals and visitors alike. A wide selection of Italian and German dishes are served to large tables of families enjoying their meals together.

This building was for centuries where justice was publicly served to accused witches, among others. Today, it's a great place to enjoy bewitching specialties like bresaola with rocket salad and Parmesan or pizzoccheri (buckwheat pasta) with garlic and winter vegetables.

The owner of this small, endearing establishment—just outside Cortina and beside picturesque Lago Pianozes—is friendly and knowledgeable, not only about the food and wine but also about the region. The menu varies according to the seasons, always incorporating local recipes—seating is limited, though, so reservations are recommended.

More than 30 wines by the glass, accompanied by an excellent selection of local cheeses, are served in this chic eatery, which has outside seating in the piazza. Salads and regional specialties are prepared in the open kitchen by gourmet chefs; the downstairs room features graffito (graffiti) murals from local artist Luigi Senesi, while the Roman wall running under the Duomo is also in clear view.

If you have difficulty choosing from the long list of tasty pizzas here, ask the friendly English-speaking staff for help with the menu. You're unlikely to find a better selection of wine, or a more pleasant environment for sampling; you can also buy bottles of the locally produced vintages to take home.

Traditional Tyrolean opulence and attentive service set the stage for some of the best food in town. Appetizers might include potato blini with salmon caviar, and marinated artichokes with butter (not to be missed if available); main dishes, such as veal with black-truffle-and-spinach canederli, make use of ingredients from local valleys. This place is popular with local businesspeople.