Trattoria Del Fagiano

Via Roma, No. 54, Moltrasio               

+39 031 290000

In the piazza just up the stairs across from the house. Five generations in the same location. Isa will take great care of you. Excellent place to find the traditional regional food of Lombardia. It’s a great value but be forewarned: the portions can be huge so don’t over-order. Usually no need for reservations but you might stop in during the day to reserve a table for Friday or Saturday night. Open for lunch and dinner. (Closed Monday and Tuesday) 

Ristorante Del Torre

Via Vittorio Emanuele II, No. 3, Cernobbio                                         

+39 031 511308

Excellent traditional Italian food and a great view overlooking Cernobbio. Lively and noisy – a great place to take the kids.

Ristorante Vapore

Via Plinio, No. 20, Torno                     

+39 031 419311

Great place for dinner if the weather is nice. Comfortable and casual terrace right on the water. Unbelievable spread of antipasti. Vapore is in Torno, the little town you see from the villa directly across the lake from Moltrasio. You can drive there in 30 minutes, but if it’s nice, reserve a water taxi in Cernobbio. They’ll take you and pick you up. You should do this at least once. Tooling about the lake in a water taxi at sunset is the quintessential Lake Como experience.

Trattoria La Moltrasina

Via Fratelli Raschi, 9, Moltrasio

+39 031 290316

Cute place with excellent traditional lake-region dishes just a short walk from Villa Meridiana. The food is good, but the pizza is not the best. Exit through the back gate, go down the stairs, turn right on Villa Roma, and walk to the upper town center. La Moltrasina is up the stairs, just behind Bar Centrale.

Hotel Florence

Piazza Giuseppe Mazzini, No. 46, Bellagio                                             

+39 031 950342

This is where you stop for lunch on a day trip to Bellagio. Just walk to the north along the waterfront until you come to the Hotel Florence. Directly across the street you’ll see a stunningly beautiful wisteria-covered pergola and tables with crisp pink tablecloths. Enjoy a great lunch while watching the ferries come and go. It’s just perfect.

La P’Osteria

Via Lungo Telo di Sinistra, 3, Argegno

+39 031 447 4072

Ridiculously charming, small restaurant in a secluded spot along the river. Great service and excellent food. Ask to be seated in the cavern, or on a hot night ask for an outside table. The restaurant is in a gorge with a small stream that delivers a cool breeze from the mountains.

Highly recommended.

Ristorante Bilacus

Salita Serbelloni, 32, 22021 Bellagio

+39 031 950480

A charming, romantic spot in the heart of Bellagio. Great traditional Italian food and warm, welcoming service. You know it’s good because there are a lot of Italians mixed in with the tourists – a rarity in Bellagio. Best of all they use the Coravin wine preservation system, which means you can order extraordinary wines by the glass – world class Brunello and Barolo, or even Tignanello and first-growth Bordeaux. The food is reasonable but the wines aren’t cheap, but hey, you’re on vacation! Why not blow 100 Euros on a glass of aged Chateau Latour?

Rovello 18

Via Tivoli, No. 2, Milano                     

+39 02 7209 3709

Great family restaurant, perfect for lunch when shopping in Milan. In the Brera district, which has lots of interesting shops, as opposed to the main shopping area of Via Montenapoleone, which is beautiful but full of nothing but over-the-top expensive designer brands (not that there’s anything wrong with that).

Il Gatto Nero

Via Monte Santo, No. 69, Cernobbio

+39 031 512042

Absolute best view overlooking Cernobbio from way, way, up on the mountainside. Definitely need a reservation (ask for a table on the upper terrace). “See and be seen” kind of place, but the food is spotty. It can be good, or it can be pretty bad. Hint: Stop in front of the restaurant. It’s not immediately obvious, but they will drive ahead of you up to a parking area, then ferry you back in their car. There’s absolutely no street parking nearby. Not recommended, but it’s a fixture on the lake.

Ristorante Colombetta

Via Armando Diaz, No. 40, Cernobbio

+39 031 262703

Excellent restaurant in old town Como. Three generations in the same location, run by three sisters and their brother. Best seafood linguine on the planet. The owner, Angelo, is a huge fan of American basketball.

Il Tigli in Theoria

Via Bianchi Giovini, No. 41, Como     

+39 031 305272

One of the few Michelin-starred restaurants on the lake. Modern and full of swanky Italian hipsters. The bar is cool but you may need a reservation for appertivo. It’s worth it. The drinks are great, and they include a free platter of excellent antipasti. Wear black.

Crotto dei Platani

Via Regina, No. 73, Brienno               

+39 031 814038

 A truly stunning location. Eat outside on the terrace and you can look straight up the lake to the Alps. Good food, especially if you’re looking for a very pretty location on the lake as well.  They have a dock so you can take a water taxi from Cernobbio.

Restaurant Il Glicine

Via Vittorio Veneto, 1, 22012 Piazza Santo Stefano, Cernobbio CO, Italy

+39 031 511332

Our favorite spot. Regularly rated Number 1 in Cernobbio on Trip Advisor. It’s a friendly, casual trattoria but we put it under fine dining because it’s the best restaurant we’ve found at Lake Como. Terrific traditional Italian food in a romantic atmosphere high above the city on the hillside. Highly recommended, open 365 days of the year, and is suitable for large groups as well as just two.

Bar Millesimo (in the Hotel Orso Bruno)

Via Regina, No. 45, Carate Urio

Great spot for a cappuccino and a cornetto for breakfast. Super casual and friendly – just a simple neighborhood joint. It’s fun to hang out on the terrace around 7pm, quaff an appertivo, and watch the locals take their “passeggiata” (Google it). It’s right across the street from Acqua Dolce, so start here then wander across the street for dinner. Say hi to owner Emanuele.

Bar Centrale

Piazza San Martino, 1, Moltrasio (down the road from the villa)

A five-minute walk from the villa. Sneak out the back gate, take the path under the highway then follow the road down the hill. It’s in the small town center about 200 meters past the underpass.

Ristorante il Filo d’Olio

Via Regina, No. 45, Carate Urio

+39 031 400136

Cute place with good pizza, just above Bar Millesimo by the ferry dock. Pizza served only at dinner.

Pizzeria L’ancora

Via Conciliazione, No. 11, Tavernola

+39 031 340769

Tiny little place on an unremarkable side street just north of Cernobbio. You’ll probably be the only tourists there.

Villa D’Este

Via Regina, No. 40, Cernobbio

Hang out with the glitterati at one of the most beautiful hotels in the world. Go there any summer night at around 10:00 or 11:00pm, sit on the terrace, order a prosecco, and listen to Guido sing American standards in broken English and Italian, accompanied by a drum machine and a cheap electric organ. Watch old men dance with slinky young models. 100% kitsch. Hint: They won’t let you in unless you’re reasonably dressed – collared dress shirts, nice jeans, skirts, dresses, no running shoes, etc. The guard at the gate will look in the car to check you out. Say the following with confidence and a smile and he’ll let you in: “Andiamo al bar per una bevanda.” Be sure to check out the bathrooms. They make the Vatican look like a Howard Johnson’s.