Rossellinis

Verdict: Worth the Effort to Book, Especially If You Are Staying at Palazzo Avino

If you are planning a trip to the Amalfi Coast and want one serious dinner on the itinerary, this is the reservation to prioritise. Hotel guests have a natural advantage, but outside guests can and do book. The question is whether you book far enough ahead. The short answer: yes, it is worth the effort, yes, you should book well in advance.

The Experience: What You Are Actually Booking

The draw at Rossellinis starts before you sit down. Dinner opens in the garden below the terrace, where a flute of champagne arrives alongside finger food served on ceramic tableware that references the region's craft tradition. The visual impact of the setting; the terrace looks out over the Amalfi Coast toward Minori and beyond, is part of what you are paying for at this price point. For a special occasion dinner, the staging from arrival onward is considered and deliberate, it reads as genuine rather than performative.

Chef Giovanni Vanacore (also credited as Gianni Vanacore in some sources) leads the kitchen with regional Italian and Mediterranean cuisine that Opinionated About Dining has tracked upward in its Classical in Europe rankings: Recommended in 2023, #385 in 2024, #479 in 2025. The Michelin star, awarded in 2024, confirms that the cooking is operating at a serious level. Vanacore's approach is described as light and balanced, rooted in southern Italian ingredients without the heaviness that can weigh down Amalfi Coast cooking when it leans too hard into the touristic. That restraint is a credential worth noting when you are deciding between Rossellinis and a more obviously showy alternative.

Sommelier Luigi Nitto manages a wine list described as extensive, with broad international coverage. On the Amalfi Coast, where wine lists at this price tier can be thin outside of Campanian options, that range matters if your group has specific preferences. It is also a reason this venue rewards a second visit, the wine program has enough depth to explore differently across multiple occasions.

Multi-Visit Strategy: How to Approach Rossellinis Across Two or Three Visits

If you are returning to Ravello or spending more than two nights at Palazzo Avino, Rossellinis has enough range to justify more than one visit, the experience is structured in a way that makes each dinner feel distinct rather than repetitive.

On a first visit, prioritise the full dinner experience from garden aperitivo through to dessert. This is the sequence the kitchen designs for, skipping the opening garden ritual to arrive late at the table misses the transition from Amalfi sunset to candlelit terrace that makes the pacing work. Let Sommelier Nitto guide the wine pairing rather than ordering independently, the list is large enough that without local knowledge you are navigating it in the dark.

A second visit works well as a more focused affair: arrive knowing what the kitchen does well and use the wine list as the variable. The depth of international coverage means there is genuine ground to cover across two evenings. If you are a serious wine drinker, this is one of the more compelling reasons to return, the list is not just long, it is described as exhaustive, which on the Amalfi Coast is notable. For comparison, the wine programs at restaurants of equivalent standing in this part of Italy often prioritise Campanian and southern Italian producers almost exclusively.

A third visit, if your stay allows it, is the time to sit at the terrace in different light conditions. The visual experience at Rossellinis changes significantly between early dinner in late summer light and a late-spring evening when the coast fades into dark below the terrace. The setting is not a gimmick, it is a structural part of what makes the price defensible at €€€€.

Ratings and Recognition

• Michelin: 1 Star (2024)
• Opinionated About Dining Classical in Europe: #479 (2025), #385 (2024), Recommended (2023)

Practical Details

Reservations: Book well in advance, particularly for summer months and weekends, this is a hard booking given the Michelin recognition and the hotel setting. Hotel guests at Palazzo Avino should book through the property. Outside guests should contact the hotel directly, as no independent booking platform data is available. Budget: €€€€, expect this to be a significant spend per head, in line with southern Italy's top-tier dining. Dress: Smart to formal is the appropriate register for a hotel restaurant at this level on the Amalfi Coast. Location: Via San Giovanni del Toro, 28, Ravello, note that Ravello itself requires either a drive up from the SS163 coast road or a taxi from Amalfi town; plan arrival logistics before the evening, particularly if driving.

Who Should Book

Rossellinis is the right choice for a special occasion dinner on the Amalfi Coast if you want Michelin-level cooking paired with one of the more visually arresting settings in southern Italy. It is also the right choice if you are a hotel guest at Palazzo Avino and want to eat at the property's leading table. It is a less obvious choice if you are prioritising innovation over classicism, the cooking is light and regional rather than progressive, if cutting-edge technique is your primary criterion, other venues in Italy will deliver that more directly. For the full guide to dining options in the area, see our full Ravello restaurants guide, and for a creative alternative in the same locality, Il Flauto di Pan offers a different register at the same destination. For planning beyond restaurants, our Ravello hotels guide, bars guide, wineries guide, and experiences guide cover the full destination.