April 26, 2021

Wondering Where To Eat In Pompeii?…

Looking for some good places to eat in Pompeii? Below you will see a couple of my favourite places…and one of my not-so-favourite’s!

1. Na Pasta – Fave Lunch Restaurant In Pompeii

I found out about Na Pasta in my pre-Italy research of great places to eat in Pompeii. Good job I did, because otherwise I would have walked past this place and not looked back.

It has a relatively understated, almost-missable shop front which may give the impression of being an average take-away place that you should probably just glance past. DO NOT DO THAT.

The interior is small and was full of locals quietly chatting and having lunch. It’s nothing fancy inside, and the table came with what I’ve come to associate with the best food in Italy….a paper placemat and a paper/plastic cup for your drink of choice. Cheap but very, very cheerful!

The Food – Best Pasta Restaurant in Pompeii

Our “quick lunch” suddenly developed into a three course palate party before my very eyes. Starters were Bruschetta (€5) , which was incredible, followed the Na Pasta Alla Nerano (€7).

I cant even describe it, except to say I had not before tasted pasta until this very day. It was truly beautiful. I was recently asked what would be my desert island/death row meal of choice and I listed this pasta.

Finally, dessert. When chocolate pasta was mentioned as a special of the day, we thought, how odd … but in the words of Joey Tribbiani “Whats not to like?” pasta…..gooood. chocolate…..gooooooood.

Wow, what even was it? A doughnut? A glorious lump of spaghetti and nutella, deep fried in a lovely dough and drizzled with chocolate. Dayum.

Don’t walk past the best pasta of your life! Get straight to Na’ Pasta – Best Pasta in Pompeii!

2. Casa Gallo – Fave Dinner Restaurant In Pompeii

Casa Gallo is a beautiful little restaurant in the heart of Pompeii. It has that real Italian charm. The waiters here are really happy to assist with menu choices for both food and wine.

Casa Gallo is much more of a traditional “dinner setting” that I would expect from a nice restaurant. Na Pasta is more of a small street-side pasta bar.

So if you’re looking for somewhere you can throw on a nice outfit or whatnot, Casa Gallo is the more traditional of the two.

The prices are also very reasonable at Casa Gallo. There is an open kitchen here and the chefs were very memorable, kept peeking at us to check that we were enjoying their food. Which we definitely were!

The Food – Best Aubergine Parmigiana in Pompeii

We had a range of dishes including aubergine parmigiana (€9- incredible) Penne with aubergine, cherry tomatoes and pecorino (€8) and grilled vegetables (€3.50).

For dessert we had Rum Baba (€4) and the lemon delight (€5). The rum baba was SOOO strong we couldn’t finish it but it was an experience!

3. Mercato Pompeiano – Should You Visit This Restaurant?

Now this isn’t necessarily somewhere I stongly recommend going, like I do with both of the above. But we ate here so I thought I may as well tell you about it. The food was good, the service fine…. but at the risk of sounding harsh it seemed a bit soulless?

This was a real shame as I loved the setting of the restaurant. It should have been the most atmospheric location, what with its beautiful cave-like walls and floor-to-ceiling wine and food display. It just seemed more style less substance really.

The desserts and Aglianico red wine were a delight, as was the complimentary Meloncello (yes MELONcello) we were served after eating.

Mercato Pompeiano is by no means bad and if you’re stuck for somewhere to go, its definitely an option. Just not as great an experience as both Na Pasta and Casa Gallo.