Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
The San Ferdinando specializes in fish plucked right from the waves, and their
menu changes more often, but standards like
pasta e fagioli
for
€
7 and pasta with
calamari,
8, are always good. Grilled squid is also a perennial on the menu (and
highly recommended).
Pizza in the Historical Center
€
€
5
(Via dei
Tribunali, 32;
%
081-446643)
may convince you that Neapolitan pizza is the best
on the planet. The menu is extensive and they spare nothing when it comes to
fresh ingredients and overall appeal. In fact, you can make it through an entire pie
without encountering any soggy crust, and each pie has that delicious smoky
undertone that only the best pizzas have (most simple pies start at just
€
2.50).
The place has the feel of a diner; your silverware arrives in a wicker boat wrapped
in a napkin. It has more rave reviews than Taillevant in Paris (or at least that's the
way it looks from the wall of self-acclaim at the front, where Sorbillo displays
every article ever written about the restaurant—and there are many). If you have
only 1 day in Naples, and are dying to see if the pizza really is better than it is at
home, this is the place to put that proposition to the test.
A Vegetarian Restaurant in the Historical Center
€
The three generations of
pizzaiole
at
Pizzeria Gino Sorbillo
55
(Vico
San Pietro a Majella, 6, Piazza Bellini;
%
081-445026)
is that rarest of heath-food
restaurants in that it coaxes sinfully delicious flavors out of all those good-for-you
foods. The cuisine can best be described as fusion, with Asian and Arab special-
ties alongside classic Italian cuisine, all of it made with only organic veggies. The
mixed plate, brimming with vegetarian couscous and potatoes, is the best deal for
€
Vegan-friendly, but not at all foodie-unfriendly,
SorRiso Integrale
7, and you can easily split it between two. My only quibble is with the ambi-
ence. If you can get a table outside, you'll dine under monstrous rubber trees, but,
inside, the atmosphere is reminiscent of a college dorm. Never mind, the food is
wonderful, and you can stock up on healthy goodies for the next day at the store
in the main lobby.
RESTAURANTS IN SANTA LUCIA
€€
If you can ignore the multitude of national flags outside the building, or
the curiously well-spoken English of the waiters, you can still have a genuine
Italian experience at
Brandi
(Salita Sant'Anna di Palazzo;
%
081-416928; reser-
vations recommended),
possibly the most famous Naples pizzeria (though I prefer
Sorbillo for its lack of pretense). This is where dignitaries dine “with the locals”
when they come to town, and the pizza is darn good. You'll be biting down on
history here, too: The owner of Brandi created the classic Pizza Margherita (
€
5)
for Princess Margherita di Savoy, Queen of Italy, back in 1889 (and she liked it
so much she gave permission for her name to be affixed to the dish).
€
The pastas and
secondi
on the restaurant menu at Brandi are nearly three
times the price of the pizza, so stick to the pies and have your pasta in a more local
place like
Da Ettore
(Via Santa Lucia, 56;
%
081-7640498),
about 10 minutes
down toward the Castel dell'Uovo. Da Ettore is a down-home cafe in a swank part
