Lugano is without a doubt the absolute hotspot for Italian cuisine in Switzerland. The city is also one of the most popular tourist destinations in the entire country. This led us to finding ourselves without a dinner reservation during a summer evening where seemingly all restaurants were fully booked. We then asked a local waitress for suggestions on where to eat authentic pizza. She advised us to pay the Restaurant Acqua e Farina a visit. Still today I thank this waitress from La Fermata for this golden tip.
The restaurant sits well-hidden in a building that mixes an indoor mall with office spaces. It is easy to miss with much grander restaurants so nearby. Once you have found Acqua e Farina however, neatly tucked away, you won’t regret it. Despite being located inside a mall, the restaurant is cozy with playful with colorful chairs and wine bottles everywhere.
The restaurant does have QR codes on the tables that leads you to online English menus. Due to Lugano having many tourists from German-speaking and French-speaking parts of Switzerland, the friendly waiters speak English as well.
Come here for the pizza!
The menu of Acqua e Farina offers antipasti, salades and meat dishes. However, the majority of guests come for one thing and one thing only: great Naples style pizza! Every pizza that comes out of the kitchen in this restaurant smells amazing. The pizzas are being topped with fresh ingredients and having a nice crust.
One of the signature dishes at the restaurant is a pizza with carbon dough, giving the pizza a darker color. The menu also includes a wide range of vegetarian and even some vegan options.
Price-wise, one has to remember that this is a Swiss restaurant. That being said, prices are very reasonable considering we are in Lugano. Pizzas on the menu start from CHF 13 and up to approximately CHF 25.
Pizza at Acqua e Farina is so delicious that they even ended up in the top 50 best pizza of 2020! Acqua e Farina stood proudly on place 31 in that list.
Practical details about Acqua e Farina
As mentioned, the restaurant is relatively well-hidden, so make sure to not walk past it! The restaurant does not have an official website, however they do have a Facebook page that is regularly updated. This page also contains a phone number in case you want to inquire about table reservations. Note that the restaurant has no outside seating.
The restaurant is open 7 days a week.
[su_box title=”Address” style=”default” box_color=”#56743c” title_color=”#ffffff” radius=”5″]Acqua e Farina
Via Canova 9
6900 Lugano, Switzerland[/su_box]
Have you eaten at Acqua e Farina? Let us know in the comments how your experience was! 🍕
