Restaurants in Pisa
If you want a genuine taste of Pisa, get away from the crowds around the Tower. Head south on Via Santa Maria as far as Piazza Cavalotti, then along Via dei Mille into Piazza dei Cavalieri. Continue through this vast, polygonal square to the center of the “real” city—it is less than 10 minutes’ walk away. At Osteria dei Cavalieri ★, Via San Frediano 16 (tel. 050/580-858), you'll find grilled meats, daily fresh fish, and traditional Pisan dishes like rabbit stewed with oregano. Main courses range from 12€ to 18€. Osteria dei Cavalieri is closed Sundays and most of August; there’s also no lunch service on Saturdays. Just across the River Arno, you’ll find a great-value lunch at La Taverna di Pulcinella ★, Via Garofani 10 (tel. 050/520-2704). Pizzas are around 10€, or you can opt for a 10€ two-course Pisan menu, which may be the likes of spelt with garbanzo beans and porcini mushrooms followed by a rustic pork steak with garlic and rosemary. It’s closed Sunday and Monday.
For pizza or cecina (warm chickpea-flour flatbread) and a cold beer, stop at Il Montino ★, Vicolo del Monte 1 (tel. 050/598-695), a by-the-slice spot often busy with students.
Any visit should include a stop for a coffee and pastry at Caffè dell’Ussero, one of Italy’s oldest literary cafe-bars, doing a brisk business since 1775 from the ground floor of riverside Palazzo Agostini, Lungarno Pacinotti 27 (tel. 050/581100). For pizza or cecina (a flatbread made of garbanzo-bean flour and served warm), stop in at Il Montino, in the historic center a block or so west of Borgo Stretto at Vicolo del Monte (tel. 050/598695). At the end of Borgo Stretto, at number 11 in the riverside Piazza Garibaldi, is Pisa’s best gelato shop, Bottega del Gelato (tel. 050/575467).
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5 Results
- Pisan
Il Campano
A meal in the simply furnished brick-and-stone rooms of an 18th-century tower house can be an evening-long event, as the kitchen makes everything to order. The pappardelle alla lepre (homemade pasta with hare sauce), tagliata di scamerita di maiale (grilled pork chops), the…$Around Town - Tuscan
Osteria dei Cavalieri
The kitchen caters to people of all tastes here, meaning vegetarian meals are highly recommended, as are the fish and game dishes. Top plates include a tagliatelle with rabbit and asparagus sauce and the swordfish carpaccio. Plus for anglophones: the friendly owner speaks excellent…$$Around Town - Pisan
Osteria dei Cavalieri
The “Restaurant of the Knights” operates out of stone rooms off the Piazza die Cavalieri and a short stroll from the Campo that date to the 12th century, while the cooking is traditionally Tuscan but founded on the contemporary Slow Food principles of fresh and local. Being Pisa,…$$Around Town - Pizza
Pizzeria La Tana
Enjoy a high-quality meal at this locals-dominated pizzeria. The pizza is primo and long wooden tables surrounded by large booths encourage family dining in a friendly, noisy atmosphere. Open late.$Around Town - Pisan
San Omobono
The produce market in the piazza just outside the door provides some nice ambience (as does a column surviving from the medieval church that once stood here) along with plenty of ingredients for old-fashioned Pisan classics, such as brachette alla renaiaola, large pasta squares in a…$Around Town
