Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Choose between a lovely mixed bruschetta with truffles and mushrooms, sausage, plat-
ters of cheese and cold meats or a Piedmontese favourite,
bagna caüda
(a hot dip made
with butter, olive oil, garlic and anchovies in which you bathe vegetables).
AGRITURISMO
€€
Agriturismo Cucchiaio di Legno
( 0322 90 52 80;
www.ilcucchiaiodilegno.com
; Via Prisciola 10, Località Legro; set menu €24; 6-9pm Thu &
Fri, noon-2.30pm Sat & Sun)
This honest-to-goodness
agriturismo
(farmstay) restaurant cooks
up delicious local dishes including risotto, fish straight out of the lake, and salami and
cheese from the surrounding valleys. Dine alfresco on the vine-draped patio overlooking
the herb-planted garden. It really is like being at someone's house. It's about 800m from
the Orta Miasino train station.
ITALIAN
€€
Ristorante Sant'Antonio
( 0322 91 19 63; Tortirogno; meals €25-30; noon-2pm & 7-9.30pm Wed-Sun)
About 1.5km north of
Orta on the main road, this family-run place has a winning combination of lakeside tables
and simple, no-nonsense cooking. Not surprisingly, it's deservedly popular. While the oc-
casional meat dish appears, fish is the name of the game.
Venus Ristorante
ITALIAN
€€
( 0322 9 03 62;
www.venusorta.it
; Piazza Mario Motta 50; meals €30-35; noon-2.30pm & 6-9.30pm Tue-Sun)
Every now and then a place surprises. We sat down here for lunch, drawn more by the
views over the water than any expectation of good cooking - it's rare to get both in Orta.
But despite a large weekend crowd, service was fast and friendly, and by the time we'd
finished eating - raw Parma ham, sliced wafer-thin, with green apple sauce and sesame-
seed foccacia, followed by gnocchi with vanilla, bourbon and red prawns - we were
hooked.
Ristoro Olina
( 0322 90 56 56; Via Olina 40; meals €35-40; noon-2.30pm & 6.30-9pm Thu-Tue)
A modern alternative
to your typical low-lit trattoria, this place offers a range of imaginative dishes combining
creativity with fine products. Dishes push the boundaries a little, such as the risotto
creamed with beetroots and pure chocolate. Service is thoughtful.
NORTHERN ITALIAN
€€
