It’s tempting to make a bee line for the Amalfi Coast restaurants that come with a view of that much photographed coastline. But nip inland for a meal or two and you’ll be treated to valley views that take in the region’s mountains and trees. Zero food mile meals might be a rarity elsewhere. In the best restaurants on the Amalfi Coast? It’s almost unthinkable not to be growing a little something on the surrounding land. Which all sounds a little too wholesome and organic for those of us with a sweet tooth. Fear not, there’s an award-winning pastry chef filling an unreasonably large chiller with Italian pastries that’ll make you beam.
Breakfast
Casa e Bottega - Positano
Italians love their food – but tend to save their calories for lunch and dinner. Which can leave you foraging for decent coffee and cake at any one of the many bakeries. Not so in Positano. Tanina – the brains behind – Casa e Bottega has created a breakfast heaven. Everywhere your eyes land you see perfection. Whether it’s the traditional Italian breakfast you’ve just ordered – two cornettos please – or shelf after shelf filled with local ceramics, design pieces and lush green house plants, everything is curated and chosen to enhance the first meal of the day. Health-conscious brekkie fans can load up on granola, acai bowls and smoothies, while foodies can dig in o French toast, caramelised banana and ricotta mousse, pancakes or any one of the freshly made cakes. And, as you’d rightly expect of any of the best restaurants on the Amalfi Coast, the coffee is the stuff caffeine dreams are made of.
Orbzii tip: There’s just one vegan dish on the menu at Casa e Bottega, an acai bowl. But the menu’s a health-conscious clutch of wellness that lends itself to a little tweaking. Avo toast, smoothies and preserves are all up for grabs.
Sal De Riso Pastry Shop - Minori
Just for a moment, glance away from the pastel colour chart on the Amalfi Coast and into the pastry cabinet of Sal De Riso. This Italian chef makes the kind of bakes that make you want to fly back in, just for one more Delizie di Limone. Though, can you stop there? The cake counter in this Minori pasticceria clocks in at an impressive 20 feet. All that space is taken up with perfect examples of Sal’s Italian pastries. There’s a slight corporate edge to the bakery, which no doubt comes from Sal leveraging his baking fame to introduce a fragrance, clothing and coffee line to his store. But with cake this good? You’ll forgive almost anything. Grab a cake (or two) and a coffee and be prepared to pay a smidge more than you might in any other pasticceria on the Amalfi Coast. It’s worth it.
Lunch
Agricola Fore Porta - Amalfi
How much effort do you fancy putting into your lunch? At Agricola Fore Porta in Amalfi you’ve got to put in a reasonable amount of legwork on the 25 minute walk just to get to your three choices. For an easy lunch, sit yourself down for a 0 food miles meal made from seasonally harvested produce on the farm. For something a little more hands on, nip into the organic farm shop to bag some local produce to whip up a lunch back at your accommodation. Or, for a fully immersive experience, join Mamma Mena on one of her cooking classes. You’ll pick up some local, Mediterranean recipes and then reap the benefits by getting to taste the fruits of your labour afterwards. Whichever one you pick, don’t miss the views over the mountains from the terrace.
Orbzii tips: If you’d like to see how the organic farm grows, harvests and tends to the crops, book a spot in advance for a farm tour. As a farm-to-table restaurant, Agricola Fore Porta opens seasonally, from April through to mid-November.
Ristorante La Fattoria - Vietri sul Mare
Add a lunch at Ristorante La Fattoria to your Amalfi Coast road trip. Driving up into the hills clues you in to the kind of views you might expect from this hidden gem’s veranda. You’ll be gazing out over the Vietri sul Mare valley – which will definitely make a change from the region’s fishing villages and clifftop views. On the menu? Seafood every which way you might imagine an Italian family might serve at the dining table. Grilled swordfish, sea bream in a white wine sauce, frutti di mare and homemade pasta and roasted king prawns. For lunches with a warming heft of carbs, Fattoria’s gnocchi alla sorrentina is a mozzarella, basil and tomato triumph.
Dinner
La Caravella - Amalfi
If you’re into foodie history – or just scrumptious Italian flavours, trot along to La Caravella. It’s not just one of the best restaurants on the Amalfi Coast, it’s a time capsule of gastronomy. For 60 years, the restaurant has been serving up recipes handed down through the generations. But, don’t expect rustic and simple on this menu. La Caravella also happens to be the first restaurant in southern Italy to bag a Michelin star. Since the 60s, the Michelin guide has had this kitchen on its radar – and the star’s still there today. So what can you expect on the menu? Choose from a 4, 7 or 9 course tasting menu that packs in the best Amalfi ingredients and leaves you in no doubt of where you’re dining. Citrus hints from the local lemon groves pepper the menus, adding tang and sharpness to everything from the lemon risotto and fish wrapped in lemon leaves to the impossibly light lemon soufflé. If you want to focus on seafood, the a la carte menu changes daily to reflect the local catch.
Orbzii tip: Don’t miss the chance to browse the restaurant’s private collection of art. Much of it lines the walls, but the art gallery and ceramics shop provide ideal browsing grounds for a post-meal muse.
La Tagliata - Postiano
Amalfi Coast restaurants with a view aren’t that hard to find. But finding one with this much heart and soul? Well, that’s a little more tricky. So do whatever you have to do to book a dinner at La Tagliata. You’ll be tucking into recipes created by the late Don Luigi – a local man who welcomed all to his home for simple home grown food. His wife, Signora Dora, and son, Vincenzo, have tweaked the recipes and carved an organic farm right into the very cliff side you’ll be eating on. So there’s barely a menu, as you’ll be feasting on whatever’s ripe from the garden. But whatever’s gone in the pot is served over the best, fresh, homemade pasta you’ll find on the coast. So much hard graft and food passion goes into the food at La Tagliata, it’s hard not to fall for the place.
The views over Positano, the warm welcome – and the chance to tour the garden, pick produce and take a cooking class all make you feel part of the family. Bellissimo.
Ready to make a reservation at some of the best restaurants on the Amalfi Coast? Let’s get you – and your appetite, to a seat at the table. Download the Orbzii app to plan and book the ultimate Amalfi Coast stay.
