Pebbly beaches in Cinque Terre.
Photo: Concierge.com

by Ondine Cohane

I have been traveling a lot around Italy this summer, and on Friday I discovered my favorite new spot. In fact, it is such a gem that I hardly want to share it. But here goes.

A good friend in Cinque Terre has been telling me about a little seafood restaurant called Da Laura, which he says is one of the best places for Ligurian cuisine on the whole coast. I was recently in that area and decided to give the restaurant a try. What I didn't expect was the location: San Fruttuoso, a tiny village in a small cove at the bottom of Portofino's National Park, is absolutely gorgeous. Its centerpiece is a Benedictine abbey that sits right in front of the sea, where the remains of the Spanish martyr San Fruttuoso are said to be buried (the guy obviously had great taste). After walking around the abbey, with its remarkably well-preserved cloister, a tenth-century church, and sepulchres, I was smitten with the place. (How had I not heard of it before?)

And that was before I sat down for lunch at one of Da Laura's tables set up under the arched foundations on a pebbly beach. The food was simple but absolutely fantastic, with fresh anchovies marinated in lemon juice, lasagna with pesto, mussels in a marinara sauce, very light fritto misto (lightly fried mixed seafood), and tonaretti fritto, a fried type of octopus, which knocked the socks off most fried calamari I have had. The present owner told me that the restaurant was started by his grandmother, Laura, in the 1950s (she died a few years ago) and based on traditional casalinga (housewife) cooking. It's hard to believe they can produce what they do from a shack on the beach; I am always happy when I find these unexpected family-run places in such a unique destination. In fact, after I took a dip in the Mediterranean between courses, I was already plotting my return trip. The restaurant is open from mid April to early November when the weather's good.