Trattoria Belfiore — Restaurant in Bologna

After eating in countless places of supposedly “authentic” local food and falling into several tourist traps we stumbled upon this place by chance one rainy night in Bolognia looking for something to eat and I must say that since that day this is definitely one of my favorite places in the city. The prices are honest, even much cheaper than all those other places that the city is plagued with. The ingredients are fresh and you can feel that Nonna's hand of homemade in her kitchen. The service is super friendly, they recommended us excellently and hit the nail on the head with what we wanted to try gastronomically in the city. The waiter spoke to us very kindly in several languages, even gave us recommendations of events to visit in the city. The house wine is excellent value for money and you get half a liter for the price of a glass of bad wine in any tourist trap nearby. All the recipes are concise, you can tell they have been prepared the same way for decades and have tradition. It is not haute cuisine, nothing sophisticated, it is honest, traditional food that will leave you happy with the taste and experience you expect from a gastronomic visit to this part of Italy.The atmosphere is a bit old-fashioned, set in the 80s and sometimes the music tuned to the radio can be a bit anticlimactic, but I think that gives an even more authentic touch to the whole place. Highly highly recommended, we will definitely be back on our next visit...

In a few words, the experience was excellent.

To elaborate, I would primarily mention that the staff presented a rarely encountered behaviour: polite, slightly humourous, friendly and cozy, all the while being eager to explain the recipes and mention the acute differences that the Cucina Bolognese added to the result.

Which brings the scrutiny to the dishes themselves. Gnocchi? So good , we ordered a second portion, while the quantity was more than standard. Tagliatelle al ragu and al funghi? Simply perfect. The pasta was cooked to perfection. The ragu was in some way special. I suspect slow cooking for hours. The porcini, didn't fail to inpress...

But what struck us as trully special were two other dishes... First, the Scallopini al Limone. My younger one devoured it in mere minutes, despite at first being dismayed by the minimalistic appearance.

Second the Penne alla Spoletina. A combination of tastes that left the taste buds challenged in waves of flavours, while being spicy enough to suit my needs for an extra touch. Suffice to say, no parmesan was added, lest it ruined the result.

Last but not least, the prices: 6 dishes of pasta, one appetizer, water, 3 refreshments, 2 beers (0,66cl) and a VERY special tiramisu for just over 100 euros.

All in all, a must visit to those that appreciate great cooking and want to taste something...

My wife and I were staying nearby. We went here right at open. We were lucky to nab 2 of the last 4 open seats. Authentic Itallian. Starter, first course, second course, and dessert. My wife ordered a starter Bruscetta, it was absolutely amazing. I tried one, we added chilli flakes per the recommendation. I think we could have ate 100 of these. Then her first/main course was Tortilini de ragu and a side of Grilled zucchini. She ate until she was full! Now me on the other hand, I ordered tagliatelle alla bolognese as a first course. Cold cuts for the starter, and a massive steak for the second course. I am not sure what it was on the menu. I pointed to the wrong item so truthfully I didnt know what I ordered. I just knew it was going to be great. Lastly, we did dessert. It was a light ice cream with orange inside sitting on white chocolate. Listen if you want good food. Find your way here. You will not be disappointed. The food was so good, service amazing, it is...