Restaurants, Shopping & More
Spoleto Festival Dei Due Mondi
http://www.festivaldispoleto.com/
Stay Tuned, this page evolves
It is enriched by the recommendations of visitors like yourself, who have enjoyed their stay at Localita Paradiso.
Restaurants
As a rule, ordering the house wine is a safe bet. The first 2 restaurants are more upscale, but worth it.
o Valle Rosa: upscale; excellent fish; but also other dishes; beautiful view, garden and wide terrace. Valle Rosa, (www.vallerosa.com, not a very informative website) S.S.3 Flamina al Km 123, 06049 Spoleto (PG) Tel: 0743.40359-224710 mobile: +39336.537144
o Hotel Clitunno: within 15 mins walking distance; in the historic center. http://hotelclitunno.com/ Piazza Sordini 6, Tel: 0743 223340
o Ristorante del Mercato, Piazza del Mercato, 29. It is owned and ran by a ‘grandmother’ type; very reliable, typical Umbrian dishes, very reasonable priced housewine!
o Osteria del Trivio, is recommended by a guest, who visited Spoleto in May. Some 2009 and 2010 reviews on the web are not positive, but maybe the place has changed since, or maybe Australians get special treatment there.
o The Restaurant/Pizzeria near the roundabout (at the corner of SS Flaminia and via Loretto, when you turn right to drive to the hospital and my house. It is unpretentious and good. We really like the pizzas there and visitors like yourselves have confirmed that over and over again.
o In the Monte Sibillini, Taverna di Castellucchio is highly recommended by some of my guests.
Where to buy fresh breakfast
o My favorite café for breakfast was on one of the main shopping streets: Corso Giuseppe Mazzini; within 15 mins walking form home. You will recognize it easily: it is on the right side when you come from the tourist office, the nicest and biggest café on that side, and has a whole pastry area. I was recently told that it is no longer good; but there is hope, as they are looking for new management.
o Another good pastry shop (though I never tested it myself) is Pasticceria Zampolini on Viale Trento e Trieste.
Things to do in evening and :
o The best way is to go to the main Tourist Office on Piazza della Liberta (above the roman forum) when you arrive and ask them for programs of various events, as the offerings are wide and changing. You can also consult the websites, which are linked to mine (and also: http://www.cuoreverdeditalia.it/, which has an English version) but sometimes I have difficulty navigating Italian websites; I guess they are not organized the way I am used to.
Shopping:
o Visit the Town of Deruta if you like pottery. More than 120 pottery companies are located in Deruta. In the small historic center you will find lovely shops showcasing the work of local artists, and some of the companies; in the outskirts of town, you can isit much bigger sized shops, showcasing the work of the companies, a bit like warehouses or outlets. Al in all you can find real works of art, as well as more traditional things.
o Spello is a sweet small village on the way to Perugia; very nice, beautiful churches and views of surrounding hills, nice atmosphere overall; nice shops to buy Umbrian textiles.
Groceries
Bread good cheeses and antipasti for picnic lunches:
§ best affordable solution: the Coop Supermercato (in the small shopping center Il Ducato; parking is underground and free) on Via dei Filosofi. that’s where we do all our major grocery shopping. Remember that shops have restricted opening hours compared to the US. Coop for ex. is not open on Sunday.
§ More colorful: there are plenty of small yummy shops around town, more like delicatessen; they will charge more than a supermarket of course, but the quality of the food is quite good in general.