Restaurant in Bologna, Italy
Daily menu, 20 seats, book ahead.
A 20-seat Michelin Plate restaurant in Bologna's residential south run by a Chinese-French-Italian couple, serving daily-changing Chinese ravioli and "migrant" cooking that draws on Emilian, Mediterranean, and Asian traditions. At the € price tier with a 4.5 Google rating, it's one of the strongest value propositions in the city for food-focused visitors who want something beyond the standard pasta circuit. Book ahead — it fills.
If you visited Ling's Ravioleria Migrante once and wrote it off as a curiosity, go back. The daily-changing menu means a second visit is a genuinely different meal, and the kitchen's confidence has only grown since earning consecutive Michelin Plates in 2024 and 2025. At the € price point, this is one of the most considered cooking projects in Bologna right now — not the most comfortable room, not the easiest reservation, but one of the most rewarding ways to spend an evening in the city's residential south.
Via Leandro Alberti sits well clear of the centro storico crowds, in a quiet residential district that gives the restaurant its particular character. The dining room holds around 20 seats , a compact, close arrangement where tables are near enough that you'll hear your neighbours' conversation if you want to. In summer, a few small tables appear outside, which changes the atmosphere considerably: more air, more light, a pace that feels less urgent. The room itself is modest by design; this is not a space built for occasion dining. It rewards diners who want to focus on the food rather than the setting.
That spatial intimacy has a practical consequence: with 20 covers, the restaurant fills quickly and cancellations are rare. Booking is not optional here in the way it might be at a larger trattoria. If you're planning to come in summer and want an outdoor table, build extra lead time into your reservation.
The menu at Ling's changes daily based on market availability, which means the lunch-versus-dinner question is more consequential here than at most restaurants. Lunch in Bologna's residential neighbourhoods tends to be quieter and more local in character , fewer tourists, faster service, often a shorter menu. Dinner at Ling's is where the full scope of the cooking tends to show: the kitchen has more time, and the couple who run the restaurant seem to lean into the evening format for their more cross-cultural combinations. If you can only come once, dinner is the stronger choice for depth of experience. Lunch is the better option if you're trying to keep costs down or prefer a less formal atmosphere , and at the € price tier, the difference in spend is unlikely to be dramatic either way.
For summer visitors, the outdoor tables are only available at lunch and early dinner before the evening fills. If the outdoor setting matters to you, aim for an early dinner reservation rather than peak lunchtime, when the heat on a south-facing street can make al fresco eating less comfortable.
The menu draws on Chinese ravioli traditions as its backbone, then extends outward into what the restaurant describes as "migrant" cooking: dishes that pull from Mediterranean, French, and Italian references with Emilia-Romagna providing the grounding. The Michelin database notes specific combinations such as Peking-style Mora Romagnola coppa ham and pink Adriatic prawns marinated in mirin and soy sauce , the kind of pairings that could read as gimmicky but here reflect genuine cultural fluency rather than fusion for its own sake. The Mora Romagnola pig is a heritage breed specific to Emilia-Romagna; using it in a Peking preparation is a decision with real culinary logic behind it.
Because the menu changes daily, there's no fixed dish to insist on. What you can expect is the ravioli in some form , it's the structural core of the menu , alongside whatever cross-cultural combinations the market and the kitchen's instincts produce that day. Drinks are pared back: tea, beer, and a small wine selection. This is not a destination for serious wine drinking. If that matters to you, note it before you book.
At the € price tier, yes , straightforwardly. A 4.5 Google rating across 350 reviews suggests consistent execution, not just a strong opening period. The Michelin Plate recognition in both 2024 and 2025 signals that the cooking meets a credible technical standard without requiring a fine-dining budget to access it. For context, you'll spend more at Ahimè or Al Cambio for very different styles of food. The comparison to I Portici is almost meaningless on price alone , that's a four-price-band gap. Ling's is not competing in that space. It's competing with Bologna's better trattorias on value, and beating most of them on originality.
This restaurant suits food-focused visitors who want something that isn't another Emilian pasta house. If you've already done the classic Bologna circuit , the ragu, the tortellini in brodo, the mortadella , Ling's is the logical next move. It also works well for solo diners (the compact room and counter-adjacent setup makes eating alone feel natural here) and for pairs who want to eat well without a long tasting menu commitment. Groups of four or more will find the 20-seat room a genuine constraint; larger parties should contact the restaurant directly to discuss options before assuming availability.
If you're building a broader Bologna itinerary, see our full Bologna restaurants guide, our Bologna hotels guide, and our Bologna bars guide for context on where Ling's fits within the city's wider dining picture. For Asian cooking at a comparable level of ambition in other European cities, taku in Cologne and Jun's in Dubai offer useful reference points for what cross-cultural Asian cooking looks like when it's working at its leading.
See the comparison section below for how Ling's sits against Bologna's broader restaurant range , from All'Osteria Bottega to I Portici , and which venue makes more sense depending on what you're after. For reference on what Michelin recognition looks like at higher price points in northern Italy, Osteria Francescana in Modena and Dal Pescatore in Runate show what a significantly larger investment buys. Ling's is not in that conversation on ambition or formality , but on value per euro spent, it compares well against almost anything in its price band in Emilia-Romagna.
The menu changes daily, so there's no single dish to insist on. The ravioli are the kitchen's structural focus , expect Chinese-style dumplings in various forms as the core of the meal. Beyond that, the kitchen combines Emilian ingredients with Asian and Mediterranean technique; the combination of local heritage-breed pork with Peking-style preparation has been cited as a representative example. Order the full menu rather than picking selectively , at the € price tier, eating broadly here costs less than a single course at many Bologna restaurants.
There is no bar seating noted for this venue. With around 20 covers in a compact dining room, the format is table service only. Walk-in bar perching is not a realistic option , book a table or don't come.
No dress code applies. This is a casual neighbourhood restaurant at the € price point , smart casual is fine, but you'll also see locals in everyday clothes. Don't overdress. Save the formal wardrobe for I Portici or Al Cambio.
Yes. Michelin Plate recognition at the € price tier is a strong value signal , you're getting cooking that meets a credible external standard without paying mid-range prices. The 4.5 Google rating across 350 reviews confirms the value holds consistently, not just on good nights. For the same spend you'd get a pizza or a simple pasta elsewhere in Bologna. Here you get a more considered and original meal.
The menu format here is daily-changing rather than a formal tasting menu in the multi-course, wine-paired sense. There is no evidence of a structured tasting menu offering. The experience is closer to an à la carte or set daily menu built around market availability. If a formal tasting menu format is important to you, look at Ahimè or I Portici instead.
Groups of four or five are manageable, but this is a 20-seat restaurant and large-group bookings will occupy a significant share of the room. Parties of six or more should contact the restaurant directly before assuming availability , there's no booking system information publicly listed, so reaching out in advance is the only way to confirm whether a group reservation is possible. For larger groups wanting a more flexible Bologna venue, Al Cambio or All'Osteria Bottega offer more capacity.
Book at least one to two weeks ahead, more during summer when the outdoor tables are in demand and tourist traffic to Bologna increases. The Michelin Plate recognition will have sharpened interest among food-focused visitors. With 20 covers, a single sold-out week can mean a two-week wait. Don't leave it to the day before and expect a table.
Yes , the compact room and the style of service make solo dining feel natural here rather than awkward. The daily menu format also works well for a single diner who wants to eat the full range without over-ordering. At the € price point, a solo meal here is one of the better-value ways to eat seriously in Bologna. Compare with Acqua Pazza if seafood is the priority, or All'Osteria Bottega for a more traditional Emilian solo experience.
| Venue | Awards | Price | Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ling's Ravioleria Migrante | A young couple (she was born in China; he’s half-French, half-Italian) have settled in this quiet residential district where they now run a tiny yet successful restaurant with around 20 seats in the dining room and a few small tables outdoors in summer – booking is essential! The menu includes various types of Chinese ravioli as well as dishes described by the couple as “migrant”, in other words “which draw inspiration from different cuisines from around the world, not only Asia but also the Mediterranean, France and Italy, with Emilia Romagna at its heart”. Examples include Peking-styleMora Romagnola coppa ham and pink Adriatic prawns marinated in mirin and soy sauce. The menu changes daily in line with market availability and the inspiration of the chef. Drinks include tea, beer and a small selection of wine.; Michelin Plate (2025); Michelin Plate (2024) | € | — |
| I Portici | Michelin 1 Star | €€€€ | — |
| Ahimè | €€ | — | |
| Oltre. | €€ | — | |
| Al Cambio | €€ | — | |
| Trattoria di Via Serra | € | — |
A quick look at how Ling's Ravioleria Migrante measures up.
The Chinese ravioli are the anchor of the menu and the reason to come — go for whichever variety is on the day you visit. Beyond that, the kitchen's 'migrant' dishes are where the cooking gets interesting: past iterations have included Mora Romagnola coppa ham prepared Peking-style and pink Adriatic prawns marinated in mirin and soy. Because the menu changes daily with market availability, there's no fixed dish to target — trust the format and order broadly.
The venue is a small dining room with around 20 seats, plus a few outdoor tables in summer — there's no bar counter seating format here. Your options are a table inside or, when the weather allows, outside. Given the size, booking is essential regardless of where you sit.
This is a 20-seat neighbourhood restaurant in a quiet residential district on Via Leandro Alberti, priced at the € tier — dress casually. There's no dress code pressure; neat, everyday clothes are appropriate. Think of it as a local's spot, not a special-occasion dining room.
At the € price tier, yes. The Michelin Plate in both 2024 and 2025 signals consistent cooking quality at a price point where that recognition is genuinely rare. You're getting a daily-changing menu that draws on Chinese ravioli traditions and cross-cultural influences — more cooking ambition per euro than most Bologna options in the same bracket.
The menu structure isn't confirmed as a fixed tasting format — the kitchen works with a daily-changing menu based on market availability rather than a set multi-course progression. Order across multiple dishes to get the full range of the cooking, including both the ravioli and the 'migrant' plates. That approach will give you a representative experience without needing a prescribed tasting menu.
With around 20 seats total, large groups are a stretch — the dining room isn't designed for parties of 8 or more. Groups of 4 to 6 are workable but will require advance booking, since a table that size takes a meaningful share of the room's capacity. For larger gatherings, the format isn't the right fit.
Book as early as possible — the restaurant itself flags that booking is essential, and with only around 20 seats, this fills faster than it appears. For weekend visits, aim for at least a week ahead; for weekday lunches, a few days may work, but don't count on walk-in availability. This is not a spontaneous-visit restaurant.
Keep this venue in your Pearl passport, rate it after you visit, and track it alongside every other place you collect.
