Location: Castiglione del Lago
Top Restaurants in Castiglione del Lago
Top Things to do in Castiglione del Lago
Where to Eat in Castiglione del Lago: The Best Restaurants and Bars
Castiglione del Lago is a town in the province of Perugia of Umbria (central Italy), on the southwest corner of Lake Trasimeno. Orvieto is 59 km (37 mi) south, Chiusi is 21 km (13 mi) to the south west, Arezzo is 56 km (35 mi) to the north west, Cortona is 21 km (13 mi) to the north and Perugia is 47 km (29 mi) to the south east.
Things to do in Castiglione del Lago
1. L'Acquario
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 650 reviews
Reviewed By Renet_58 - Sint-Joris-Winge, Belgium
When I write “near to perfection”, it is because I don’t think perfection exists. This restaurant is specialised in local dishes, and therefore you get deliciously tasting food. Fish from the nearby lake, vegetables from the surroundings, etc. For each of the courses you have a choice between 5 to 8 options. Over the years, the menu did not change a lot, and I’m very happy with that, because it’s so good. It is not for nothing that they obtained a “slow food” certificate. In addition, there is an interesting wine list with mainly Italian wines. Of course, attention is paid to local (Umbrian) wines. Regardless your choice, the wines are of very good quality.
The restaurant is situated in the historical centre of Castiglione. It has a pretty large dining room with sufficiently large tables. There are also two small terraces, one at the front side (on the street, but kind of separated from the people walking by), and the other one at the backside with view on the garden and the lake.
The restaurant is run by the family, and they are all very nice, helpful and professional.
2. Ristorante Monna Lisa
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 916 reviews
Reviewed By coffeefairy - London
This place is a real find, an assuming treasure of a restaurant located by a corner of the central piazza in Castiglione Del Lago. It offers that unheard of (for an Italian) offering of shellfish in the middle of Umbria, the spaghetti al vongole are out of this world and the cozze (mussels) are as good if not better than anything I have ever eaten at a beach side restaurant. We go at least once a month with my father in law, one of the owners, Domenico is a wine expert and he knows what to reccomend, the fillet steak is perfect, or for the more adventurous the carpaccio of the local speciality beef is out of this world. The atmosphere is warm and inviting in the winter and in the summer the tables outside offer a perfect view onto the happenings of the piazza. And finally... the home made tiramisu is better than anything I make at home and that is saying something! I cannot recommend it enough. Wonderful place...wonderful people.
3. Ristorante La Cantina
Overall Ratings
4 based on 1 reviews
Reviewed By Graham P - Boston, United Kingdom
Having been on a boat trip across the lake and looking for something to eat before returning home, we came across this restaurant down the main street. It was about 6pm. The outdoor Seating area was very well presented and had a wonderful view over the lake The menu looked good, varied and something for the whole family. However, It was only after we ordered and received drinks that we were told only pizzas were available until after 7pm. When we queried this, the waitress was not exactly rude but a little Brusque. Not wanting to wait for an hour we all had pizzas. To be fair they were very good and 'filled a hole'. We will return as it looked the nicest restaurant along the street, the view is amazing and would like to try other offerings on the menu. We'll make sure it's after 7pm.
4. Osteria Le Scalette
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 624 reviews
Our Restaurant is small and welcoming,is located on the main steps that lead to the historical center of Castiglione Del Lago with a lake view.We offer you ,in a family atmospher,a tipical cuisine of Umbria and Tuscany,very simple,homemade,as made from our mother and granmother.As it is our chef is mamma Anna.Our speciality is lake fish,wild boar and deer,Tuscan Pig D.O.P.(The pig black and white).Pasta is home made and my wife Agnese makes dessert.Thank You and good appettit
Reviewed By MarcoEtGiusy - Tarquinia, Italy
We had dinner here on our trip in the region. Our table was on the veranda outside where we could see a small portion of the lake. Unfortunately, the road was busy, being the main road of access to the historic center and sometimes the smell was not pleasant. The lady serving the tables was nice and efficient. I had delicious grated vegetables and "Pici all'aglione" that were too watery and not particularly tasty. My wife had fried fish that was good as the tagliatelle with truffle her parents got. Not a bad place but there are better (and more expensive) options in the area.
5. Ma Ke Te'l Dico a Fa'
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 363 reviews
Reviewed By Thomas N - Portland, Oregon, United States
Italy is expensive when you have the standard three-course meal. Not here. The three course meals we had were about 25€ per person, including wine and water. Still the food was first-rate! It truly is a family restaurant; Grandma in the kitchen, Mom runs the front with Dad's help, but he's a mostly in the kitchen too, while the two young ones play with each other in the dining room. This is an osteria, which means it's a neighborhood place, and we felt welcome. The interactions and people watching combined with really very good food made it among the best experiences over two weeks in Italy.
The menu changes so much there is no menu. The owner comes out and tell you what they are making that day, and you choose one of the four pastas for your first, one of the four meats for the second, and there is a selection of vegetables that are served family-style for the third. While their English isn't perfect, and my Italian is largely limited to food words, we really enjoyed our interactions with them and they did a fantastic job patiently helping us understand the options. They are wonderful people, and they really showed appreciation for our repeat business.
Made by really amazing Italian cooks who love making mind-blowing food, we enjoyed home made pasta varieties in seasonal, perfectly balanced and tasty sauces; meat options that were prepared exquisitely in a variety of ways ranged from wild boar, a bird (I don't recall the Italian word for - was told it was "like chicken" but it tasted better than chicken), local beef, and lake fish (the city is on Lake Trasimeno). The house wine is inexpensive and it's good, we had a charcuterie antipasto with house made spreads and sausages, and the homemade limoncello was perfect.
Ma Ke Te'l Dico a Fa' is fantastic, but Castiglione del Lago is a gem most tourists will never find. That's kind of sad as the walled town center on the hill that overlooks the lake is gorgeous, but part of the magic is that the whole town is filled with some really great people who aren't jaded by a constant crush of tourists. However, there are a lot of really popular cities nearby, and many agriturismos. If you find yourself in one of them, make plans to eat here.
6. Ristorante la Badiaccia
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 956 reviews
Ristorante con cucina tipica(carne,salumi etc..)Tutti i giorni specialita di mare in arrivo dai nostri mari.Pane e pasta fatto in casa.Carta dei vini con circa 250 etichette nazionali ed estere.
Reviewed By dvdwekken - Leiden, The Netherlands
We (two people from Chile living in Paris, one half English / half German woman, and me, from the Netherlands) were travelling back from a wedding in Umbrie towards Florence. We decided to have lunch at Ristorante la Badiaccia as it has such good reviews. And rightly so - the food was truly amazing, fresh and very local. On top of that there was great service, even in English. You want to have good food in an authentic Italian setting? - this is the place to go.
7. Umbria Terra e Sole
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 186 reviews
Shop Of Gastronomic Specialty Of The Region With Possibility Of Tasting Meats, Cheeses And Bruschette Accompanied By A Good Glass Of Winenegozio Di Specialità Gastronomiche Della Regione Con Possibilità Di Degustazione Salumi,formaggi E Bruschette Accompagnati Da Un Buon Bicchiere Di Vino
Reviewed By Wineword - Ferrara, Italia
Called in to this shop after Reading other Tripadvisor reviews. We were not disappointed. The portions of cheeses, salumi and hot bread were more than adequate... In fact the most generous 'tagliere' I have seen. Accompanied by a 'bucket' of Trasimeno DOC wine... This, coupled with the friendly, well-informed and attentive staff really brightened an overcast and chilly March day. Needless to say, we came away with a couple of the products we had tasted. I was looking for an edible gift suitable for a friend in Saudi Arabia...again I was ably assisted. Thank you ladies!
8. La Casa di Francesca
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 332 reviews
Restaurant with garden. You might do in here cooking classes at the Cooking school Trasimeno
Reviewed By SaprissAmericano - Jersey City, New Jersey
Ate here several times and each meal was excellent. Farncesca is a great cook and Danielle runs the service and front of house. Together they do a great job. Everything on the menu is outstanding. The wine list is also very good. We attended their cooking school out back one day and had a blast !! I highly recommend doing this for some real fun. Love this place. Don't miss it !
9. La Taverna di Julio
Overall Ratings
4 based on 361 reviews
Reviewed By BobbieMac421 - Kirkland, WA
The food was excellent, steaks from Argentina cooked on the open fire by Julio and Umbrian pasta dishes that are as good as you can find. Our visiting friend was surprised by the special birthday celebration that Julio's put on at a few minutes notices. The lights went off, the music blared "Tanti Auguri" and the staff came marching in with a candle on top of a panna cotta! Our friend was knocked over! Cost was 3 Euros for the panna cotta.
10. Cafe Alise
Overall Ratings
4.5 based on 56 reviews
Reviewed By Eleanor M - Benalla, Australia
I've said it before and I'll say it again ... this is the best gelati in the area. The staff are all friendly and offer you test tastes, but the best thing is the amazing variety of flavours they have. They sell train tickets too so that is an added excuse to go there, if you need one.
