Restaurant in Contigliano, Italy
Simple, honest cooking one hour from Rome.
Delicato earns its two consecutive Michelin Plates with disciplined, ingredient-led country cooking in a medieval hilltop village on the Lazio-Umbria border. At €€ with easy booking, it offers better value than most Michelin-recognised restaurants in central Italy. Return visitors should request the plant-based menu — it is where the kitchen's current ambition is clearest.
Delicato is the right choice if you want honest, ingredient-led country cooking in a medieval hilltop setting, priced at €€ in a region where that kind of value is increasingly rare. Chef Carlotta Delicato keeps things deliberately unfussy, and that restraint is the point. If you have been once and ordered the pasta, go back and work through the vegetable dishes — that is where this kitchen is building something worth paying attention to. Booking is direct, the setting is genuinely beautiful, and the Michelin Plate recognition in both 2024 and 2025 confirms this is not a local secret running on charm alone.
Contigliano sits on the edge of Lazio where it meets Umbria, about an hour northeast of Rome, and Delicato occupies a spot on Via Umberto I at the base of the village church. The dining room works visually before you have touched the menu: exposed stone walls, minimalist furniture, and, in fine weather, outdoor tables positioned at the foot of the church create a setting that lets the architecture do most of the work. If you are returning after a first visit, try to time it for warmer months and request the outdoor space. The contrast between the medieval stonework above you and the clean, quiet plates arriving at the table is part of what makes this place cohere as an experience.
Chef Carlotta Delicato cooks from a position of clear conviction: local ingredients, regional influence, deliberate simplicity. The kitchen draws on the traditions of Lazio and neighbouring Umbria without pastiche. What has sharpened recently is the vegetable work. Michelin's own commentary points toward the plant dishes as the area where the restaurant has genuine forward momentum, and if you are visiting for the second time, the fully plant-based menu — available on request , is worth considering as your framework for the meal. It is not a compromise format; it is where the kitchen's discipline becomes most visible.
The signature dish with the broadest consensus is the spaghettone mare e lago, finished with a light brunoise of courgettes. It is the kind of dish that reads simply on paper and delivers more than the description suggests , a useful signal for how the kitchen thinks. The wine list leans into small-scale Lazio producers; the Cabernet Sauvignon Masseria Baroni, described as medium intensity with broad and pronounced aromas, is a practical match for the food without demanding that you engage with it at length. For a €€ restaurant in this province, that kind of wine programme adds meaningful context to the meal.
The Google rating sits at 4.9 across 252 reviews, which at that volume is harder to dismiss than a high score on a thin sample. Michelin awarded the restaurant a Plate in both 2024 and 2025, signalling consistent, competent cooking that meets a recognised standard without overreaching. That consistency matters for a second visit: you are not chasing a one-off performance.
Delicato is priced at €€, which in the context of Lazio's Rieti province represents fair value for the quality on offer. Booking is rated easy, so you do not need to plan weeks ahead, though the outdoor tables at the foot of the church are in demand in good weather and worth specifying when you reserve. Hours and phone contact are not published in the available data, so confirm directly when you book. The address is Via Umberto I, 2, 02043 Contigliano RI. If you have dietary requirements, the kitchen has demonstrated willingness to build around plant-based parameters , a 100% plant menu is available on request , so it is worth flagging your needs at the time of reservation rather than on arrival. Contigliano is a small village, so plan your visit as the anchor of a day trip or an overnight in the province rather than a quick detour; the journey from Rome takes roughly an hour and the setting rewards more than a rushed lunch. For more on the area, see our full Contigliano restaurants guide, our full Contigliano hotels guide, our full Contigliano bars guide, our full Contigliano wineries guide, and our full Contigliano experiences guide.
Delicato occupies a different tier and a different register than the other Michelin-recognised Italian restaurants most travellers are weighing in this part of the country. Osteria Francescana in Modena, Reale in Castel di Sangro, and Dal Pescatore in Runate are all €€€€ operations with multi-star pedigree and booking windows measured in months. Delicato at €€ with easy availability is not trying to be those restaurants, and that clarity of purpose is to its credit. If your trip is built around a single high-commitment dining destination, one of those three is the right call. If you want something grounded, seasonal, and regionally honest without the price or the planning overhead, Delicato is the more practical answer for central Italy.
Within the country-cooking format specifically, it is worth looking at 21.9 in Piobesi d'Alba and Andrea Monesi - Locanda di Orta in Orta San Giulio as peers operating in a similar register in their respective regions. Both reward the kind of traveller who values producer relationships and unfussy execution over formal dining ritual. Delicato's vegetable focus gives it a slightly more defined identity than a traditional trattoria, which is useful if you are travelling with mixed dietary preferences.
Atelier Moessmer Norbert Niederkofler in Brunico and Quattro Passi in Marina del Cantone sit at the €€€€ end of Italian creative cooking and serve a fundamentally different purpose: destination dining with tasting menus and full commitment. If that is your budget and your format, those are strong options. But if you are in Lazio and want a meal that earns its place on the itinerary without demanding the whole day and a significant portion of your dining budget, Delicato is the answer in this province.
Start with the spaghettone mare e lago , it is the most-cited dish and a clear expression of how the kitchen thinks about simplicity and restraint. On a return visit, ask about the full plant-based menu, which is available on request and represents the sharpest current direction of the cooking. For wine, the Cabernet Sauvignon Masseria Baroni from a small Lazio producer is a practical and well-matched option at this price point.
There is no confirmed bar seating in the available data for Delicato. The restaurant has a minimalist-style dining room with exposed stone walls and an outdoor terrace at the foot of the village church. In a small village restaurant of this type in Lazio, a dedicated bar counter is uncommon. Book a table and specify indoor or outdoor based on the weather when you reserve.
Yes, and more substantively than most restaurants at this price point. A fully plant-based menu is available on request, which suggests the kitchen has built genuine infrastructure around dietary flexibility rather than making ad hoc substitutions. Flag your requirements at the time of booking. Contact details are not published in the current data, so reach out through the reservation channel you use to confirm specifics in advance.
Yes, with some qualification. The setting , stone walls, outdoor tables at the base of a medieval church , is inherently atmospheric, and the Michelin Plate recognition gives the meal a credential that holds up in conversation. At €€, it does not deliver the full ceremony of a €€€€ tasting-menu restaurant, so if the occasion calls for that level of theatre, look at Dal Pescatore or Osteria Francescana instead. But for a birthday or anniversary where the priority is a beautiful, unhurried meal in a genuinely unusual village location rather than a parade of courses, Delicato works well.
At €€ with a 4.9 Google rating across 252 reviews and two consecutive Michelin Plates, yes. The value case here is that you get a kitchen with a clear point of view and recognised technical competence at a price point where that combination is uncommon in central Italy. The comparison set for €€€€ restaurants in this country is formidable, but Delicato is not competing there , it is delivering honest, regionally grounded cooking at a price that does not require justification. The drive from Rome makes it a half-day commitment, which is the real cost to weigh.
Contigliano is a small village, and dedicated restaurant alternatives at the same level within the village itself are limited. If you are broadening the search to the Rieti province and neighbouring Umbria, the category shifts quickly toward either simpler agriturismi or significantly more expensive destination restaurants. For country cooking in a similar register elsewhere in Italy, 21.9 in Piobesi d'Alba and Andrea Monesi - Locanda di Orta in Orta San Giulio are the closest stylistic peers, though both require different routing. See our full Contigliano restaurants guide for the most current local options.
| Venue | Cuisine | Awards | Booking Difficulty | Value |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Delicato | Country cooking | Situated in a picturesque medieval hilltop village in the province of Rieti on the border with Umbria, this restaurant serves cuisine that is influenced by different regions and traditions. Choose between the minimalist-style dining rooms with exposed stone walls and, in fine weather, a charming outdoor space at the foot of Contigliano’s church. Here, chef Carlotta Delicato brings out the best of local ingredients in dishes that are kept deliberately simple and unfussy yet are full of flavour. We highly recommend the “spaghettone mare e lago” with a light brunoise of courgettes. As the restaurant is situated in Lazio, guests can enjoy good local wines made by small-scale producers, such as the Cabernet Sauvignon Masseria Baroni, which is of medium intensity with broad and pronounced aromas. .; Chef Carlotta Delicato has deep respect for her region and its traditional products, and she seeks to surprise by adding her own personal touch to every creation. She works in a modern way, but without unnecessary fuss – the product must speak for itself. Vegetables play an important role in her cuisine, and the pure plant dishes are truly worth discovering. With this talented chef, we would love to encourage her to take it one step further and place plants firmly center stage. Nestled in a charming village not far from Rome, it’s a journey worth taking. Do you want a 100% pure plant menu, thats available on request. Surprising pairings and extraordinary balance make each dish a revelation.; Michelin Plate (2025); Michelin Plate (2024) | Easy | — |
| Atelier Moessmer Norbert Niederkofler | Italian, Creative | Michelin 3 Star, World's 50 Best | Unknown | — |
| Dal Pescatore | Italian, Italian Contemporary | Michelin 3 Star, World's 50 Best | Unknown | — |
| Osteria Francescana | Progressive Italian, Creative | Michelin 3 Star, World's 50 Best | Unknown | — |
| Quattro Passi | Italian, Mediterranean Cuisine | Michelin 3 Star, World's 50 Best | Unknown | — |
| Reale | Progressive Italian, Modern Cuisine | Michelin 3 Star, World's 50 Best | Unknown | — |
What to weigh when choosing between Delicato and alternatives.
The Michelin inspectors single out the spaghettone mare e lago with a light brunoise of courgettes as the standout dish. Beyond pasta, the plant-based dishes are worth attention — chef Carlotta Delicato treats vegetables as the main event, and a fully plant-based menu is available on request. Pair with one of the small-producer Lazio wines on the list, the Cabernet Sauvignon Masseria Baroni being a documented recommendation.
There is no bar seating referenced for Delicato. The restaurant offers minimalist dining rooms with exposed stone walls and, in good weather, an outdoor terrace at the foot of Contigliano's church. Book a table rather than arriving speculatively.
Yes, and more deliberately than most at this price point. A fully plant-based menu is available on request — chef Delicato treats vegetables as central to the cooking rather than an afterthought. For other restrictions, check the venue's official channels before your visit, as hours and contact details are not publicly listed.
It works well for a low-key special occasion where the emphasis is on food and setting rather than ceremony. The medieval hilltop village, stone-walled dining rooms, and an outdoor terrace beside the church provide a clear sense of occasion, and the Michelin Plate (2024 and 2025) gives confidence in the kitchen. At €€ pricing, it is more intimate dinner than grand celebration — if you want formal service and a long wine list, look elsewhere.
At €€ in the Rieti province, yes. Michelin Plate recognition two years running confirms the kitchen is performing above the local baseline, and chef Carlotta Delicato's ingredient-led approach keeps costs honest. The drive from Rome — roughly an hour — is the real cost to weigh; if you are already in the area or building a Lazio itinerary, the value case is clear.
Contigliano is a small village, so direct local alternatives are limited. Rieti town, about 10 kilometres away, has a broader restaurant selection for everyday dining. For Michelin-level country cooking in the wider Lazio and Umbria region, the comparison set expands significantly — but Delicato's €€ price point and plant-forward angle make it harder to replace like-for-like.
Keep this venue in your Pearl passport, rate it after you visit, and track it alongside every other place you collect.
