Restaurant in Carrara, Italy
Serious seafood, mid-range price, easy booking.
A Michelin Plate-recognised seafood restaurant in Carrara with two consecutive years of Michelin recognition and a 4.6 Google rating, at accessible €€ prices. The evening and Saturday lunch services offer a more elaborate, elegant experience than weekday lunch — making it the area's most credible mid-range option for contemporary Italian coastal cooking.
Extra holds a 4.6 Google rating across 388 reviews, which is a meaningful signal for a mid-range restaurant in a city leading known for quarrying rather than dining. If you are looking for a contemporary Italian seafood restaurant in the Carrara area that punches above its price tier, Extra is the answer. The Michelin Plate recognition in both 2024 and 2025 confirms it is operating at a level above most neighbourhood trattorie, and the €€ pricing means you are not paying fine-dining rates to find out. For the broader Carrara dining picture, see our full Carrara restaurants guide.
Extra sits slightly inland from Marina di Carrara on Viale Turigliano, which puts it a short distance from the coast without being a beachfront tourist trap. The name is a reference to the highest grade of Carrara marble — extra-quality stone , and the restaurant carries that self-positioning into its interior: bright, modern, and more considered than a typical Ligurian-border seafood spot. The menu draws directly from the fish and seafood culinary traditions of this stretch of Tuscan coastline, where anchovy-rich waters and working fishing ports have shaped local cooking for generations.
What makes Extra worth understanding before you book is that this is not a single, fixed experience. The kitchen and the room shift register between lunch and dinner, and between weekdays and Saturday lunchtimes. That distinction matters for how you plan your visit.
The lunch service at Extra is the more casual proposition. It is where the menu skews simpler and the pace is more relaxed, making it a practical option if you are spending a day around the marble quarries or moving through the coast en route to Cinque Terre or La Spezia. The value-to-experience ratio at lunch is likely to be strong at the €€ price point: you get the kitchen's seafood-led cooking without the more elaborate framing of the evening.
Saturday lunchtime is a different matter. The Michelin Guide specifically notes that Saturday lunches at Extra carry a more elaborate menu and a more elegant ambience, bringing the experience closer to the evening register. If your schedule allows only a daytime visit and you want the fuller expression of what Extra does, Saturday lunch is the slot to target. It offers the most complete daytime experience without requiring you to stay through dinner.
The evening service is where Extra leans furthest into its contemporary Italian positioning. The menu becomes more structured, the room more formal, and the overall experience more deliberate. For a special occasion or a longer meal with wine, dinner is the right call. The Michelin Plate recognition applies to the restaurant as a whole, but the evening is where that credentialing feels most earned. If you have already visited for a weekday lunch, the evening is the natural next visit , the kitchen's range is wider and the pacing unhurried.
For returning visitors, the Saturday lunch offers a useful middle ground: the quality of an evening service at lunchtime hours, without committing a full evening. That is the move if you are a repeat visitor wanting more depth without a dinner reservation.
The menu is rooted in the seafood traditions of the Carrara and Marina di Carrara area, which sits at the junction of Ligurian and Tuscan coastal cooking. That means fish-forward dishes shaped by proximity to working fishing ports, interpreted through a contemporary Italian lens rather than a strictly traditional one. Specific dishes are not confirmed in available data, so approach with an open appetite and ask the kitchen what is coming in fresh , that question is always worth asking at a seafood restaurant at this price level.
The €€ pricing positions Extra as an accessible mid-range option. You are not looking at the per-head spend of Osteria Francescana in Modena or Dal Pescatore in Runate, both of which operate at €€€€ and require significantly more planning and budget. Extra is the kind of restaurant where a well-chosen two- or three-course meal with wine stays within a comfortable range for a mid-week meal or a considered weekend lunch.
A comparable experience in the Italian Contemporary seafood register can be found at Uliassi in Senigallia, though Uliassi operates at a considerably higher price tier with three Michelin stars. Extra is not competing at that level, but it offers a credible entry point into the region's seafood cooking for visitors who are not chasing starred itineraries. See also L'Olivo in Anacapri and Agli Amici in Rovinj for comparably positioned Italian Contemporary addresses in coastal settings.
Also worth noting for planning purposes: Il Narciso is the other Carrara address worth considering if you are building a longer stay around the city's dining options.
Reservations: Booking is rated Easy , walk-in risk is lower here than at destination restaurants, but calling ahead for Saturday lunch or dinner is advisable given the small size typical of restaurants at this tier. Budget: €€, mid-range by Italian standards; a full meal with wine should stay comfortably within reach for most travellers. Dress: No confirmed dress code, but the evening service and Saturday lunch carry a more elegant ambience , smart casual is the right call. Location: Viale Turigliano, 13, 54033 Carrara MS , slightly inland from Marina di Carrara, accessible by car. Getting around: See our full Carrara hotels guide, bars guide, wineries guide, and experiences guide for planning the wider visit.
Yes, at €€ pricing with two consecutive Michelin Plate recognitions and a 4.6 Google rating, Extra offers strong value for the Carrara area. You are getting a Michelin-acknowledged contemporary Italian seafood kitchen at mid-range prices , that combination is not common. It is a better value proposition than comparable coastal Italian restaurants operating at €€€€ tiers, and a more credentialed choice than a standard neighbourhood trattoria.
Specific menu format data is not confirmed, but the evening service and Saturday lunch are described as more elaborate than weekday lunch. If a structured multi-course format is available, the evening is where it will make most sense given the more considered pacing and ambience. At €€ pricing, the risk is low enough to warrant exploring the longer format if offered.
No confirmed group booking policy or seat count is available. For groups, call ahead , the restaurant's size and layout will determine feasibility, and mid-week evenings are likely more flexible than Saturday lunch, which fills on quality reputation. Given the easy booking difficulty rating, securing a group slot with advance notice should be achievable.
No confirmed policy is available, but the seafood-forward menu means pescatarian diners are well served. If you have specific dietary needs, contact the restaurant directly before booking , this is standard practice at restaurants of this profile and more reliable than assuming accommodation.
A mid-range contemporary restaurant with a relaxed lunch service is a reasonable choice for solo diners. The weekday lunch format, in particular, is likely the most comfortable slot , lower ambient pressure and a simpler menu pace. Solo diners looking for a more convivial counter or bar setting should confirm with the restaurant whether seating options beyond tables are available.
Bar seating is not confirmed in available data. The restaurant is described as bright and modern, which suggests a dining-room-led format. Contact Extra directly to confirm whether bar or counter seating is an option before planning a solo or spontaneous visit around that format.
| Venue | Awards | Price | Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Extra | Situated slightly inland behind Marina di Carrara, Extra (the name refers to the quality of the region’s world-famous marble) is a bright, modern restaurant with a menu inspired by the area’s fish and seafood culinary traditions. The menu is slightly more elaborate and the ambience more elegant in the evening and on Saturday lunchtimes.; Michelin Plate (2025); Michelin Plate (2024) | €€ | — |
| Atelier Moessmer Norbert Niederkofler | Michelin 3 Star, World's 50 Best | €€€€ | — |
| Dal Pescatore | Michelin 3 Star, World's 50 Best | €€€€ | — |
| Osteria Francescana | Michelin 3 Star, World's 50 Best | €€€€ | — |
| Quattro Passi | Michelin 3 Star, World's 50 Best | €€€€ | — |
| Reale | Michelin 3 Star, World's 50 Best | €€€€ | — |
Comparing your options in Carrara for this tier.
No confirmed group booking policy is on record, so call ahead before bringing more than four people. The restaurant is described as bright and modern, which suggests a mid-sized dining room rather than a large-format venue. Saturday lunch and dinner are the more elaborate services, making them the better choice for a group occasion — but confirm availability directly, as the space may have limits on larger tables.
Yes. Two consecutive Michelin Plate recognitions (2024, 2025) and a 4.6 Google rating across nearly 400 reviews at €€ pricing is strong value for the Carrara area. You're getting a seafood-led contemporary menu at a price point well below what comparable Michelin-noted addresses charge along the Tuscan and Ligurian coasts. If you're spending a day near the marble quarries or passing through Marina di Carrara, it's a clear choice over a casual harbour trattoria.
The menu is rooted in the seafood traditions of the Carrara coast, so pescatarian diners are well covered by the existing format. For other dietary needs — vegetarian mains, allergies, or gluten-free requirements — check the venue's official channels before booking, as the kitchen's flexibility on a seafood-focused contemporary menu will vary.
The weekday lunch service is the practical entry point for solo diners: the menu is simpler, the pace is relaxed, and the €€ price range keeps the commitment low. A Michelin Plate restaurant at this price point is a reasonable solo lunch choice, particularly if you're in Carrara for the day. Evening service is more structured and better suited to pairs or small groups.
No tasting menu format is confirmed in available data. What is confirmed: the evening service and Saturday lunch run a more elaborate menu than weekday lunch. If you want the fuller expression of the kitchen's seafood-led contemporary cooking, book Saturday lunch or dinner rather than a weekday midday slot. Verify current menu formats when reserving.
Bar seating is not confirmed. Extra is described as a bright, modern restaurant with a dining-room-led format, which makes counter or bar dining unlikely as a standard option. If bar seating matters to you, confirm when booking — the restaurant's layout on Viale Turigliano is not documented in enough detail to say either way.
Keep this venue in your Pearl passport, rate it after you visit, and track it alongside every other place you collect.
