10 Best Local Dishes From the Amalfi Coast

Gnocchi alla Sorrentina is a simple yet classic dish along the Amalfi Coast, particularly in Sorrento. The dish consists of just a few ingredients: gnocchi, mozzarella, a tomato-based sauce, and basil. You'll find gnocchi alla Sorrentina on just about any menu at local ‘trattorias’ through to high-end ‘ristorantes’.

If you want to learn how to make an authentic gnocchi alla Sorrentina, we recommend attending a cooking class at the Penisola Experience in Vico Equense. It’s around 30 minutes north along the coast from Sorrento by car. During the class, you also get to prepare an authentic Italian dessert like tiramisu.

Scialatielli ai frutti di fare is made with ingredients such as shellfish, shrimp, and squid. The dough for scialaitielli pasta is made with milk instead of eggs. The region's best restaurants usually make this fresh pasta by hand.

While scialatielli ai frutti di mare is usually made from shellfish such as mussels or clams, some restaurants add scallops or calamari. You can also find variations of this dish that swap out scialatielli for risotto.

Parmigiana di melanzane is a relatively simple dish, but can be found on the menus of Michelin-starred restaurants along the Amalfi Coast. It consists of tomato sauce cooked for no more than 30 minutes before being layered into slices of ripe eggplants with shiny and taut skins. Bake the combination in the oven, and you’ll have an authentic parmigiana di melanzane.

If you want to treat yourself to a high-end parmigiana di melanzane while exploring the Amalfi Coast, we recommend heading to Terrazza Vittoria at the Grand Hotel Excelsior Vittoria in Sorrento. You’ll need to book your table in advance.

Made with layers of chocolate and peak-season eggplant, melanzane al cioccolato is a popular dessert that’s much more delectable than it sounds. It’s a staple treat during the Ferroagosto public holiday, though you can find it throughout the summer in most towns and cities along the Amalfi Coast.

While melanzane al cioccolato may sound strange, it’s a must-try dessert when visiting the Amalfi Coast. In the town of Maiori, many restaurants add ricotta or liquor for an extra burst of flavour. Other common ingredients include cinnamon, lemon, and candied orange.

Cuoppo d’ Amalfi is one of our favourite street food dishes on the Amalfi Coast. This simple street food – which usually costs just a few euros – consists of fried fish and squid in a paper cone. This makes it excellent for a casual meal by the shore.

Cuoppo d’ Amalfi often comes with a side of onion rings and fries. A must-visit for this treat is in the town of Amalfi, at the aptly named Cuoppo d’ Amalfi. The takeaway shop is just a short walk from the Fontana di Sant'Andrea and Duomo di Amalfi.

Delizia al limone, which translates to ‘lemon delight’, is a sponge cake filled with lemon cream, brushed with a covering of limoncello, and topped with a lemon-based whipped cream. It’s slightly crunchy on the outside and delectably fluffy on the inside.

You can find delizia al limone on the menu of most restaurants and pastry shops along the Amalfi Coast. One of the most popular bakeries in the town of Amalfi is Pasticceria Andrea Pansa, which is located inside the Piazza Duomo.

A celebrated seafood dish along the Amalfi Coast, moscardini con le patate consists of baby octopus simmered in red wine vinegar and potatoes boiled in saltwater. Both ingredients are combined with olive oil, white wine and herbs, plus seasonings such as garlic, salt, and pepper.

If you want to make moscardini con le patate at home, make sure to cook the prepared octopus and potatoes in wine until the wine evaporates by half. Alternatively, treat yourself to an authentic dish by ordering it from a traditional trattoria along the Amalfi Coast.

Mozzarella di bufala Campana is a type of mozzarella cheese that’s typically produced in the Campania (Campana) region. Unlike mozzarella you’d find on a pizza, this version is made with milk from Italian Mediterranean buffalo. It goes well with a wide variety of meals, including the Caprese salad.

It’s worth noting that all authentic mozzarella di bufala Campana is made from a ‘controlled designation of origin’ near Naples. The cheese usually served as a starter at most restaurants along the Amalfi Coast, and accompanied by vegetables and prosciutto. An authentic buffalo mozzarella should ooze milk as you slice into it.

Spaghetti alle vongole comprises 2 key ingredients: spaghetti and clams. This dish can be found at just about any restaurant along the Amalfi Coast. Some restaurants serve it macchiato (stained) with tomatoes.

Spaghetti alle vongole goes down great with a glass of local Falanghina wine. While you’re exploring the Amalfi Coast, we highly recommend trying this dish with local Vongole Veraci clams instead of imported Manila clams. If you want to try a slightly sweeter version, order spaghetti with lupin clams instead.

Alici di Cetara refers to a well-loved dish consisting of anchovies caught in the delightful fishing town of Cetara. The anchovies are either fried or marinated before being flavoured with colatura di alici, an Italian fish sauce that’s also made from Cetara’s famous anchovies.

As the name suggests, the best place to taste this dish is in Cetara – it’s around 11 km southeast of Salerno. While we encourage you to try alici di Cetara during your visit to the Amalfi Coast, we also recommend tasting other regional seafood dishes that are drenched in the delicious fish sauce.