Where to eat in Ostuni: farmhouse cooking, extra-virgin olive oil and trattorias in the white city

Ostuni: the table of the white city

Ostuni, the white city that dominates the olive plain from the top of its hill, is one of the places where Apulian cuisine expresses itself in its most genuine form. Here extra-virgin olive oil is not a condiment but the absolute protagonist of every dish, wild greens gathered in the fields become unforgettable side dishes, and grilled meat is an art handed down through generations. Eating in Ostuni means entering the farmhouse tradition of southern Italy through the front door.

The food neighbourhoods

The old town

The white lanes of the old town, climbing from Porta Grande to the Cathedral, host restaurants and trattorias with panoramic terraces over the olive plain. Venues here are more refined and prices slightly higher, but the views and atmosphere are priceless.

The lower town

At the foot of the old town, along Corso Vittorio Emanuele and the surrounding streets, you will find more everyday trattorias and rotisseries where locals eat daily. This is where you will find the best value for money.

The masserie of the countryside

Ostuni's countryside, dotted with monumental olive trees and stone masserie, offers some of Puglia's most authentic dining experiences. Masseria lunches follow a precise ritual: vegetable antipasti (at least six to eight courses), a primo of fresh pasta, grilled meat, house dessert.

Must-try dishes

Bombette

Bombette are rolls of pork capocollo stuffed with canestrato pugliese cheese and parsley, grilled over olive-wood embers. They are the most emblematic dish of the Valle d'Itria, and in Ostuni every butcher-grill prepares them. They are eaten with friselle and cherry tomatoes.

Orecchiette and fresh pasta

Handmade orecchiette, still today shaped by signore who prepare them outside their doorsteps in the old-town lanes. Dressed with braciole ragù (meat rolls in sauce), with cherry tomatoes and cacioricotta, or with turnip tops and anchovies.

Vegetables and sides

Ostuni's cooking is a hymn to vegetables: lampascioni (wild onion bulbs) fried or baked, sautéed turnip tops, fava beans and chicory, roasted peppers, stuffed aubergines. Every trattoria serves a plate of mixed seasonal vegetables that alone justifies the meal.

Ostuni extra-virgin olive oil

The oil from Ostuni's countryside, produced from the Ogliarola Salentina cultivar, is among Puglia's finest: green-fruity, slightly bitter and peppery. Taste it pure on a frisella with fresh tomato.

Sweets

Cartellate, thin ribbons of fried pastry dressed with fig vincotto, are the Christmas sweet but can be found year-round. Pasticciotti filled with cream and sour cherry, glazed sweet taralli and almond gelato complete the tradition.

Markets and food shops

The Saturday-morning weekly market in Piazza della Libertà is an institution: stalls of local fruit and vegetables, cheeses, olives, taralli. The butcher-grills in the lower town sell bombette and meat ready to grill, at very reasonable per-kilo prices. Oil mills open to the public in the countryside offer tastings of new oil in autumn.

Budget tips

Rotisseries and bakeries in the lower town serve focaccia, panzerotti and rustic pastries for 2-4 euros
Butcher-grills cook the bombette you buy: you pay only for the meat (8-12 euros/kg) and eat on the spot
A masseria lunch with endless antipasti and wine included costs 25-30 euros: a complete experience
Old-town trattorias offer lunch menus for 15-20 euros
Buying oil directly from the mill costs half the price of tourist shops in the centre
Loose taralli at bakeries cost very little and make the perfect snack

Where to stay and what to see

To plan your stay, also consult where to stay in Ostuni for options between the white old town and masserie in the countryside, what to see in Ostuni in 2 days for an itinerary through the cathedral, alleys and beaches, and how to get to Ostuni for train, airport and transfer information.