Restaurant in Recco, Italy
Four generations, one focaccia worth the detour.
Manuelina has been serving Ligurian cooking in Recco since 1885 and holds a Michelin Plate for 2024 and 2025. At a €€ price point with a Google rating of 4.4 across nearly 1,900 reviews, it is the most historically grounded place to eat focaccia di Recco and straightforward fish-focused Ligurian food in town. Booking is easy and the Focacceria side suits walk-ins.
If you are deciding between Manuelina and a more anonymous trattoria along the Ligurian coast, Manuelina wins on history, consistency, and the focaccia alone. This is the restaurant that, by family account, made focaccia di Recco famous — the fourth generation now runs a place that has been operating since 1885, and it holds a Michelin Plate for 2024 and 2025. At a €€ price point, it is one of the better-value arguments for a special lunch or dinner on the Italian Riviera. For a full picture of what to eat and do in the area, see our full Recco restaurants guide.
Manuelina operates as two distinct rooms under the same roof: the Focacceria, where the family keeps the traditional baking side of the business alive, and the main restaurant, which seats diners at round tables in a setting that reads as comfortable and unhurried rather than formal. Round tables matter more than they sound — they make the room work for groups and they ease the conversation at a celebration dinner. The split layout means you can stop in for focaccia alone without booking, or sit down to a full fish-forward Ligurian meal. For a special occasion, the restaurant side is the better choice; the Focacceria is the practical stop for something fast.
The kitchen is grounded in Ligurian tradition with fish as the primary focus, though meat dishes appear on the menu. The focaccia di Recco , the thin, cheese-filled version that is entirely different from the thick bakery focaccia most visitors expect , is the one dish that every table should order. Michelin's Plate recognition, awarded in both 2024 and 2025, signals cooking that is technically sound and consistent rather than experimental. This is not a destination for avant-garde cuisine; it is a destination for Ligurian cooking done with long institutional knowledge. If you want to compare fish-focused Ligurian cooking nearby, Da ö Vittorio in Recco is the natural peer reference. For a broader look at Ligurian cooking further along the coast, Vescovado in Noli and Bagatto in Loano are worth considering.
Booking difficulty is rated easy, which makes Manuelina a practical option even with short notice. That said, summer weekends on the Ligurian Riviera fill restaurants fast, so booking a few days ahead is sensible rather than optional. The Focacceria side may accommodate walk-ins more readily than the full restaurant. Hours are not confirmed in our data , contact the venue directly to verify current service times before planning a late dinner. For context on late-night options in the area, check our full Recco bars guide. If you are building a wider itinerary, our Recco hotels guide, wineries guide, and experiences guide cover the rest of the town.
| Detail | Manuelina | Da ö Vittorio (Recco) |
|---|---|---|
| Cuisine | Ligurian (fish focus) | Seafood, Ligurian |
| Price range | €€ | Not confirmed |
| Awards | Michelin Plate 2024, 2025 | See Pearl listing |
| Booking difficulty | Easy | Not confirmed |
| Google rating | 4.4 (1,849 reviews) | See Pearl listing |
| Address | Via Roma 296, Recco GE | Recco |
For full seafood options in Recco, see Da ö Vittorio.
Manuelina sits in a different tier from the high-end Italian restaurants most travellers use as reference points. Osteria Francescana in Modena, Dal Pescatore in Runate, and Atelier Moessmer Norbert Niederkofler in Brunico all operate at €€€€ and are destination restaurants built around long tasting menus and elaborate service. Manuelina is a €€ neighbourhood institution where the focus is traditional Ligurian cooking and a specific regional product , focaccia di Recco , that you will not find executed with the same historical authority at the high-end peers. They are not competing for the same booking.
Within the regional Italian mid-range, Quattro Passi in Marina del Cantone and Reale in Castel di Sangro are both at €€€€ and deliver a more chef-driven experience if that is the priority. For fish-focused Italian dining at a higher level of ambition, Uliassi in Senigallia is the comparison to make. But if the goal is authentic Ligurian cooking at a fair price with a genuine historical claim, Manuelina is the answer in Recco and the comparison largely irrelevant.
The honest positioning: Manuelina is not where you go to eat Italian cuisine at its most technically advanced. It is where you go when you are in Recco, when you want the real focaccia di Recco, and when you want a relaxed dinner that will not require a special-occasion budget. For diners building a broader Italian fine-dining trip, Enoteca Pinchiorri in Florence, Piazza Duomo in Alba, Le Calandre in Rubano, or Enrico Bartolini in Milan offer more in terms of ambition and occasion weight.
| Venue | Price | Booking Difficulty | Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Manuelina | €€ | Easy | — |
| Atelier Moessmer Norbert Niederkofler | €€€€ | Unknown | — |
| Dal Pescatore | €€€€ | Unknown | — |
| Osteria Francescana | €€€€ | Unknown | — |
| Quattro Passi | €€€€ | Unknown | — |
| Reale | €€€€ | Unknown | — |
What to weigh when choosing between Manuelina and alternatives.
Manuelina is a traditional family-run restaurant at the €€ price point, not a formal dining room. Neat, comfortable clothes suit the setting well. If you are eating in the Focacceria side rather than the main restaurant, the atmosphere is even more relaxed — think clean casual rather than dressed-up.
Manuelina's format divides between the Focacceria and the main restaurant with round tables — it is not structured around bar or counter seating in the way a modern bistro might be. For a lighter, faster visit, the Focacceria side is the practical choice. The full restaurant experience requires a table booking.
Order the focaccia di Recco. This is the dish that Manuelina's original owner made famous in the 1880s, and the Michelin Guide specifically flags it as highly recommended. Beyond that, the kitchen focuses on Ligurian fish dishes with traditional preparation — that is where the menu earns its Michelin Plate recognition.
Yes, with the right expectations. Manuelina works well for a meaningful meal tied to the region's food history — it has been run by the same family since 1885 and holds a Michelin Plate, which gives it real occasion weight. It is not a fine-dining splurge at €€ pricing, so manage expectations accordingly: this is a celebration of Ligurian tradition, not a tasting-menu event.
Recco is small, and Manuelina is the most historically documented restaurant in the town. For a broader Ligurian fish experience at higher price points, Quattro Passi in Nerano (also Michelin-recognised) represents the region's more ambitious end. Within Recco itself, the focaccia di Recco tradition is kept alive at several bakeries and focaccerie, but none carry Manuelina's generational provenance.
At €€, yes. Manuelina delivers a Michelin Plate-recognised meal in one of Liguria's most historically significant restaurant settings, without the cost of the region's higher-end options. For what you pay, the combination of genuine tradition, the focaccia di Recco, and a fish-focused Ligurian menu represents fair value — particularly for visitors making a dedicated trip to Recco.
Tasting menu details are not confirmed in available venue data. Given the €€ price range and the restaurant's traditional, family-run format, à la carte ordering around the focaccia and fish dishes is likely the more natural way to eat here. Check directly with the restaurant for current menu formats before booking.
Keep this venue in your Pearl passport, rate it after you visit, and track it alongside every other place you collect.
