Dining in Monterosso al Mare

We always dine incredibly in Cinque Terre and this trip is no exception.  We have all our dinners in Monterosso al Mare, the northermost of the five villages, and they are all memorable experiences.  Our first full day, we dine at Tosca, starting with caprese di buratta and tomatoes, tris di acciughe (anchovies), followed by trenette artigianali con gamberie gorgonzola (homemade trenette pasta with local shrimp and gorgonzola cheese sauce), ravioli with branzino, and octopus with buratta and confit cherry tomatoes

Starters

Trenette, ravioli

Octopus

Our next dinner is at an old favorite, L'Osteria, where we enjoy mixed bruschetta and anchovies, followed by ricotta and spinach ravioli and seafood ravioli

Bruschetta, anchovies

Ravioli

We return to Tosca another night for buratta (again) and salt cod on polenta, followed by ravioli with branzino (again also).

Buratta, salt cod

Ravioli

Later in the week, we dine at Ely, sharing red mullet fillets stuffeed with ricotta and potatoes (breaded with tartar sauce and caper flowers), stuffed calamari with tomato sauce, and a speck and brie pizza.

Red mullet, calamari

Pizza

We dine so well in Cinque Terre!  We've learned to make a few of these dishes ourselves at home, but some we can't master or get the ingredients (fresh anchovies).  And, dining in this spectacular environment is a tremendous part of the experience!