Cavatelli with clams and beans, chicory and fava bean purée, tiella barese (rice, potatoes and mussels), the indispensable orecchiette, an invention of the housewives of the old town, seasoned with turnip tops, anchovies and garlic or with braciola sauce; the very fresh seafood and fish, cooked in a thousand ways, continue to be the undisputed protagonists on restaurant tables, offered simply and traditionally or tastefully revisited and lightened. But always accompanied by the incomparable extra virgin olive oil and the generous Apulian wines. These are just some suggestions on what to eat in Bari but the variety of Bari’s cuisine offers many other typical dishes.
Restaurants in Bari
Ai 2 Ghiottoni Restaurant
Near via Putignani, just steps from the dark red silhouette, strapped by scaffolding, of the Petruzzelli Theater (which caught fire about 15 years ago and, to the great regret of the people of Bari, has not yet been restored), the doors open to Ai 2 Ghiottoni, a Bari restaurant with thirty years of fame, always very busy both at lunch and dinner. The interiors are very bright and elegant, helped by the play of the white vaults, the Lecce tuff on the walls and the stone floors of Trani. Hosting are Mario De Napoli, his wife Rosa, and their son Francesco, assisted by a large group of collaborators in the dining room and kitchen. A highlight is the fresh fish counter just beyond the entrance, where customers can choose among large dentex, sea bass, gilt-head bream, sheepshead, scabbardfish (very tasty small sharks), scampi, huge lobsters. Alfredo Mesiti, the head chef, signs dishes that masterfully interpret Apulian tradition: “cavatelli with prawns and clams on a bed of fava bean purée,” “risotto ai 2 Ghiottoni,” sumptuous mixed grills, sea bass and gilt-head bream cooked in salt, and among desserts a stunning “chocolate soufflé,” a house specialty.
Piccinni 28 Restaurant
A few blocks away, still in the heart of the Murat district, stands Piccinni 28, a restaurant that, for the people of Bari, is synonymous with superb cuisine, impeccable service, soft and refined atmospheres. During the week, among tables set with romantic rustling linens and delightful porcelain, managers, politicians, businessmen often sit, continuing business conversations between courses; while on weekends, more couples and small groups arrive, eager to honor the delicacies of chef Francesco Buttiglione, served against the pleasant notes of a piano. Small masterpieces include “mint swordfish rolls,” “wild chicory with fava bean purée in extra virgin olive oil,” “homemade maccheroncini with fresh fava beans and toasted almond flakes” or “fresh grouper and olives,” “Bari-style stuffed cuttlefish,” “turbot fillet all’acqua pazza.” The wine list is important and carefully curated, dominated by Apulian wines, followed by national and a few foreign labels. During the beautiful season, you can dine in an unexpected inner garden among yuccas, chikas, dracaenas, and bamboo, a small green lung amid the city’s concrete.
You can’t leave the old medieval district without a look at the most significant monuments, pride and joy of the entire city: the imposing Norman-Swabian-Aragonese castle, the Basilica of Saint Nicholas, patron saint of Bari, and the fabulous Cathedral of Saint Sabinus, and, of course, at the picturesque tangle of alleys, small squares, courtyards, votive shrines and symbols against the evil eye and slander.
A few steps away, behind the ruins of the Margherita Theater, there is the small port, gathering place for old and new sea wolves, with the San Nicola Pier and the famous ‘nderr alle lanze, the point where fishing boats dock with their catch of seafood, which also supplies the restaurants and stalls of the nearby market. One could spend hours watching fishermen “arricciano” octopus, beating them vigorously on the ground or with a sturdy wooden paddle, to tenderize the meat before cooking.
Il Pepe Finto Restaurant
Just a few hundred meters away, right at the beginning of via Nicola de Nicolò, hides a small restaurant with a curious name and interesting cuisine: Il Pepe Finto, an elegant but not stuffy venue, with a gently lightened and revisited local cuisine, and excellent service. The menu, signed by the friendly chef Patrizio Mele, offers delicate appetizers, such as vegetable couscous, tuna meatballs, zucchini rolls; first courses with legumes (“cavatelli in bean cream,” “fava bean and chicory purée with onion and fried bread cubes,” “egg pasta scraps with chickpeas”…), with vegetables (“spaghetti with chicory tops, fava bean purée and cheese”; “fresh orecchiette with turnip tops and anchovies”; “penne with cherry tomatoes and Swiss chard”…), with seafood or bottarga. Seconds focus on grilled small lobsters, grilled scampi and prawns, rock fish cooked in various ways and monumental lobsters. Meat lovers find Angus steak and fillet, “sliced sirloin with arugula and cherry tomatoes,” “oven-roasted salt and pepper lamb” and much more. Specialties are to be enjoyed seated at light wood tables, with stylized lines, set with yellow-gold fabric strips instead of classic tablecloths and white porcelain, with an eye on the large wall fully occupied by bottles, revealing a rich and curated wine list.
Alberosole Restaurant
Leaving the waterfront and entering elegant corso Vittorio Emanuele, the dividing line between the old and new city, you arrive in minutes at Alberosole, a very welcoming small restaurant housed on the ground floor of a 14th-century building, with interiors marked by tuff vaults and chianca floors, the typical local stone. Tables are set with Lecce linen tablecloths and artisanal ceramic plates, each different from the other. This was intentionally created about ten years ago by the two owners, Antonio D’Amico and his wife Alessandra, eager not only to respect seasonality and territoriality of dishes but also to enhance and enrich them with creative ideas, products of thorough research of ingredients and pairings. Thanks to the skill of the two chefs, Nicola Mastrolonardo and Pasquale Laudizio, a simple “chicory and fava bean purée” becomes an enticing “pouch filled with chicories served on a cream of dry fava beans” and the indispensable orecchiette assume the flavor and aroma of buckwheat and are seasoned with scorpionfish meat, fresh ricotta cream and basil. The loyal clientele, made up of entrepreneurs, managers, professionals, clerks, but also couples and families in the evening or on weekends, are warmly welcomed directly by the owners and served in the dining room by Patrizia Ferrulli.
A short walk through the right-angled streets of the Murat quarter leads to the heart of the commercial city: via Sparano, Bari’s most elegant street, with sparkling shop windows full of refined goods, but also places full of history and culture, such as the Laterza Bookshop, housed in the former premises of the glorious publishing house, which also collaborated with Benedetto Croce, as a plaque on the building recalls.
Taverns in Bari
Osteria delle Travi Il Buco
On the edge of the suggestive old city, which in recent years has seen a strong recovery thanks to European funds from the Urban Plan, there is Osteria delle Travi Il Buco, one of the oldest venues not only in Bari but in all of Apulia, where, among centuries-old vaults, rustic furnishings and old lithographs of Bari, you can savor a genuine cuisine of origins: orecchiette with horse meat ragout or “alla cardinale” (with tomato, basil and the typical marzotica ricotta, to be grated), cavatelli with clams and beans, tiella or “tiedda” (rice, potatoes and mussels) on Fridays, the indispensable “braciola” (a horse meat roll with cheese, parsley and garlic), grilled or roasted fish, and tasty mixed fried fish. At lunch, clerks, bankers, prefecture officials, sales agents, students, workers arrive; while in the evening, families, couples and small groups mark a warm and informal, almost festive atmosphere. Taverns in Bari are generally of good quality; we recommend a stop at those that exalt Bari’s traditional dishes.
How to reach FullTravel’s selected restaurants
Osteria delle Travi Il Buco
Largo Chiurlia 12, Bari Tel. 339.1578848 Closed Sunday evening and Monday Seats 100 Private parking no Credit cards no Bill €20, including house wine.
Il Pepe Finto
Via N.de Nicolò 33, Bari Tel. 080.522.79.90 Closed Tuesday Seats 50 Private parking no All credit cards Bill €40, wine excluded.
Alberosole
Corso V.Emanuele 13, Bari Tel. and Fax 080.5235446 Closed Monday Seats 40 Private parking no All credit cards Bill €35-40, wine excluded.
Ai 2 Ghiottoni
Via Putignani 11, Bari Tel. 080.5232240 Closed Friday Seats 180 Private parking no All credit cards Bill €40-45, wine excluded.
Piccinni 28
Via Piccinni 28, Bari Tel and Fax 080.5211227 Closed Sunday Seats 60+60 outdoor Private parking no All credit cards Bill from €28 for tasting menus; €40 à la carte, wine excluded.
