Found this restaurant on a quick side trip to Alanno. Wonderful lunch, mostly local businessmen…read moreeating that afternoon, and very charming owner. The meal included 2 primi piatti--spaghetti alla chitarra with roasted pan charred fresh chilis to slice and add, and sublime tender folded squares of eggless pasta enrobed with ricotta, pancetta, butter, and rosemary. The secondo piatto was a butter soft slice of stewed veal with roasted potatoes. Dessert was a sponge cake with a cream and fruit filling. A nice wine accompanied lunch. All typical of the best of Abruzzese cuisine.

The staff were pleasant, efficient and attentive. The food was delicious and of the highest…read morequality! Lovely restaurant. Highly recommend.

Clemente is a real Sulmona institution, and I called to make reservations even before we got into…read moretown. Its a Michelin-noted, white tablecloth place with impeccable but cordial service, and a great menu. It's also very popular with locals, many of whom were in evidence, ordering their "usual" dishes. The portions are decently generous, and one of ours came with unexpected bonuses. The quality of the food was always high, and the execution ranged from "good" to "very good". Unfortunately their signature farfalle dish was the one that impressed the least; other dishes we had were more characterful. Great wine list with lots of Local, Italian and some international choices. This is a real Sulmona experience, and worth considering if you'll be in town.

This little restaurant near Bolognano has a good Italian "anti-pasti" buffet lunch for €9 per…read moreperson. It included a huge assortment of veggies, fresh sliced ham, and bread. The pasta here is fresh and tasty as well. Super nice wait staff!

I came here with relatives that live locally. We went for the pasta alla chitarra and the…read morearrosticini. Both were excellent! If your not from the area, I will explain and post pictures of what they are. Arrosticini is lamb meet on a skewer. It is a specialty of Abruzzo and severed all over. You can buy them premade or make your own. If you buy them they are usually made by machine so they are all uniform in size. They are small, so you typically eat several of them, not just a few. Figure on 5-8 a person. There is a special metal brazier or charcoal cooker for them and they are made of the exact size to fit on that without burning at the ends and falling in. The cooker a long rectangular box is called a canala as it looks like a gutter. So if you make them yourself you better be measuring. The meat is seasoned and they are quite tasty! You usually pay for them by the singular and can order as many as you want. Suggestion: Order a small order and eat them warm. Then order again for more. If you order a lot at once they can get cold as they are rather thin. So by making several orders they stay fresh and you can see how people like them. They are often an appetizer due to their size. As for pasta alla chitarra, that is a pasta which is cut on a wood box with strings like guitar strings. It sounds like a guitar if you run your fingers over it. Most have two sides and one is thinner and one is thicker depending on your preference. You roll out the dough, then place it on the box, and then roll over it with the roller and push the dough through. It is string cut and falls below, then hang it to dry. They use a bit of hot red pepper in the sauce here so that adds a nice kick to it and makes it much more tasty! You can buy chitarra pasta just like any pasta from a factory but honestly it doesnt taste as good. To me it looks more like any other pasta after you boil it. However there may be better brands out there. This restaurant has very good chitarra pasta and arrosticini, so you can sample both of them here.

You don't go there for the service (rough and direct to say the least - smiling isn't even an…read moreoption). You don't go there for the quiet atmosphere (quiet Italians? I don't think so!). You go there for the food, which is absolutely amazing. The owners are fishermen and as true fishermen, they only serve what they fish daily. And for bonus, they have a cook who knows how to properly prepare all that sea food. It's fresh, it melts in your mouth, it's to die for - and even if you don't like fish, you will love this fish! Tip: Don't be a tourist and ask for the menu. Just say you'll take the appetizers. You will see the waiter come regularly to your table with small plates of everything. Best way to have a taste of about 15 different seasonal sea dishes, warm and cold. And if you're still hungry after that, try some pasta - absolutely delicious. And if you're still hungry after, have some grilled shrimps or calamari. And if you're still hungry after that, I'm sure you can have some dessert, though we didn't make it that far... Bonus point: The house wine is bottled Zaccagnini.

This is not your typical Italian local restaurant offering you your nonna's food just as if your…read morenonna was still there making it for you. This is local produce used to their best but presented and mixed with a modern twist. Finally, Italians are discovering that they can do more with their cooking that just what their nonna was doing! We started with the Antipasti della Maiella: Hot and cold typical appetizers, enough to feed a small army. We then shared different Primo and Secondo: The chittarini baccala were great; the home-made gnocchi with pears and rum were absolutely delicious (yes you read that correctly... pear and rum in my gnocchi!) and the grilled mozzarella was to die for. The Vino della casa was good but then it was a local Zaccagnini and really you can't go wrong with those. For dessert, unable to choose, we were proposed sample plates with 4 different typical desserts which were very well presented and really good indeed. We were full by the time we finished the appetizers... We were joyfully happy by the end of the gargantuan meal. Even though there was a huge and loud (Italians, eh?!) party in the big room, the service was always friendly and thoughtful. And all that for 20 Euros per person! Oh how I missed Italy! :-)