15 local food Updated September 30, 2026

What to eat in Naples

Naples on a plate, and what it costs now

Pizza, pizza fritta, sfogliatella, babà, ragù, genovese and the street-food cuoppo, with what each costs now and where to order it.

A Neapolitan margherita with a puffy charred rim, tomato, melted mozzarella and basilWorth it

Pizza napoletana

Soft, wet in the middle, blistered at the rim, baked in 60 to 90 seconds. A margherita costs €6.50 at Da Michele and €10.50–€12 at a sit-down place in Chiaia. Here are the rules and the prices.

Margherita €6.50–€12 Baked in 60–90 seconds UNESCO-listed craft, 2017
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Pairs well with

L'Antica Pizzeria da MicheleGino e Toto SorbilloWhere to eat pizza in Naples
A golden fried folded pizza cut open to show ricotta and cracklings insideWorth it

Pizza fritta

Dough folded around ricotta, provola and pork cracklings, fried rather than baked. €6 at the old fry shops, €3.50 in the small size, €18 in a fashionable pizzeria. Here is who charges what.

€6 classic, €3.50 small Case Nuove, Forcella, Materdei Eat it hot, from the paper
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Pairs well with

La MasardonaStarita a MaterdeiPizza napoletana
Two shell-shaped sfogliatelle dusted with icing sugar, one broken open to the fillingWorth it

Sfogliatella

The shell-shaped pastry of crackling layers (riccia) or soft shortcrust (frolla), filled with semolina, ricotta and candied peel. About €2 at the counter. Here is which to order and where it comes out warm.

About €2 at the counter Best at breakfast, warm Station, Toledo, old town
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Pairs well with

ScaturchioBabàCaffè napoletano
A rum baba glistening with syrup on a small white plateWorth it

Babà

A spongy yeast cake soaked in rum syrup until it drips. €2 at a counter, €5.50 with whipped cream in a restaurant, €24 for a gift box of ten. Here is where and how.

€2 counter, €5.50 at table Soaked in rum syrup Spaccanapoli and the station
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Pairs well with

ScaturchioSfogliatellaPastiera
Ziti in a deep red slow-cooked meat ragù with a piece of braised beefWorth it

Ragù napoletano

Not Bolognese: whole pieces of beef and pork, braciole and sausage cooked slowly in tomato, the sauce on the pasta and the meat after. €12 for ziti with ragù at Tandem, the restaurant built around it.

Pasta with ragù €12 A Sunday dish at home Pasta first, meat after
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Tandem RagùGenovesePizza fritta
Broken ziti in a golden-brown onion and beef genovese sauceWorth it

Genovese

A white ragù of beef and onions cooked until the onions melt into a brown cream, tossed with broken ziti. Nothing to do with Genoa's pesto. €12 at Tandem, €16 at Umberto in Chiaia.

Ziti alla genovese €12–€16 Onions cooked 10–12 hours No pesto, no basil
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Pairs well with

Tandem RagùOsteria della MattonellaRagù napoletano
Two fried pasta fritters, one cut to show bucatini, béchamel, ham and peasWorth it

Frittatina di pasta

A disc of bucatini pasta bound with béchamel and cheese, breaded and deep-fried. Crisp outside, creamy inside, €2–€2.50 at a fry counter. Here is where, and how to eat it without burning your mouth.

€2–€2.50 each Street food, eaten from paper Fry shops and pizzerias
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Pairs well with

La MasardonaStarita a MaterdeiCuoppo
A paper cone of mixed fried street food: rice balls, croquettes and dough frittersWorth it

Cuoppo

A paper cone (cuoppo) filled with fried things: potato croquettes, rice balls, pasta frittatine, dough balls, or small fish and squid. €6 for the land version, €10–€13 for the sea one. Here is where.

€6 land, €10–€13 sea Eaten walking, from paper One cone feeds two as a snack
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Pairs well with

La MasardonaFrittatina di pastaPizza fritta
An espresso with thick crema in a white porcelain cup, a glass of water beside itWorth it

Caffè napoletano

A short, strong, often pre-sweetened espresso, drunk standing at the counter in two sips. Italy's average is €1.29 a cup; a table in Chiaia charges €2.50. Plus the caffè sospeso and the old flip pot.

About €1.30 at the bar Two sips, standing The 'caffè sospeso' custom
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Pairs well with

Gran Caffè GambrinusSfogliatellaBabà
A lattice-topped pastiera with one slice cut to show the ricotta and wheat fillingWorth it

Pastiera

A shortcrust tart filled with ricotta, cooked whole wheat, eggs and candied citrus, baked under a lattice. Made for Easter, sold year-round. €24 for 800 g, €8 for two single portions.

€24 for 800 g, €4 a mini Easter tart, sold year-round Better the day after baking
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Pairs well with

ScaturchioEaster in NaplesSfogliatella
Spaghetti with clams in their shells, garlic, olive oil and parsleyIt depends

Spaghetti alle vongole

Naples' clam spaghetti comes in bianco (garlic, oil, parsley) or with a few cherry tomatoes. Ask for vongole veraci and whether they are fresh. We found no 2026 menu price to print, and say so.

In bianco or with tomatoes Ask: veraci? fresh today? 2026 price not published
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Pairs well with

Where we would eat in NaplesChristmas in Naples and the presepiPosillipo
A ball of buffalo mozzarella cut open, with tomatoes and basilWorth it

Mozzarella di bufala campana

Only buffalo milk, only from a defined zone of Campania and neighbors, DOP since 1996. Eat it fresh, at room temperature, the day it is made. A Chiaia restaurant charges €35 per kg; dairies charge far less.

DOP since 1996 €35 per kg at a restaurant Caserta and Salerno dairies
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Pairs well with

PaestumTandem RagùPizza napoletana
A small chilled glass of limoncello beside two lemons with their leavesIt depends

Limoncello

Lemon peel steeped in alcohol, then sweetened. A good 50 cl bottle costs about €15 in Sorrento and Naples. The IGP label covers the lemons, not the liqueur, so read the ingredients before you buy.

About €15 for 50 cl IGP lemons: Sorrento, Amalfi Served ice-cold, after dinner
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Pairs well with

Limoncello and lemon grove visit in SorrentoSorrentoThe Amalfi Coast (Positano, Amalfi, Ravello)
Twisted taralli studded with almonds and black pepper on brown paperWorth it

Taralli sugna e pepe

Twisted rings of bread dough made with lard (sugna), lots of black pepper and whole almonds, baked hard. €1.60 each at Taralleria Napoletana. Eat them with a cold beer by the sea.

€1.60 each, 3 for €4.80 A seafront snack Contains pork lard
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Pairs well with

The Lungomare walkPasticceria PoppellaSpaccanapoli
Small sugar-dusted brioche buns, one cut open to a ricotta-and-cream fillingWorth it

Fiocco di neve

A small soft brioche filled with a cold, sweet cream of sheep's ricotta and milk, buried in icing sugar. Invented at Poppella in the Rione Sanità in 2015. Three shops sell the original; here are their hours.

Sanità, Santa Brigida, Cavour Sanità shop to midnight €1.50 in 2024, check now
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Pairs well with

Pasticceria PoppellaRione Sanita walkRione Sanita

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Sights 22 Day trips 19 Experiences 12 Events 7 Walks 6 Areas 9 Hotels 14 Restaurants 16 Cafes & bars 8 Plan 9 Itineraries 7 Worth it? 8 Guides 6 Articles 4