Restaurant in Rimini, Italy
Rimini's Michelin star. Book ahead.
The strongest case for a serious dinner in Rimini. Abocar Due Cucine holds a Michelin star and an OAD Europe #404 ranking, with chef Mariano Guardianelli running a tightly edited creative menu that fuses Argentine instinct with classical European technique. At €€€, dinner-only, booking well in advance is essential — this is Rimini's clearest answer for a special occasion.
Most visitors to Rimini think of it as a beach resort with decent pizza and fried seafood. Abocar Due Cucine is not that restaurant. This is a Michelin-starred kitchen operating in the old city, run by Argentine chef Mariano Guardianelli, whose tasting menu draws on South American instincts and a classical European apprenticeship in equal measure. If you are looking for a serious special-occasion dinner in Rimini, this is the clearest answer the city has. Book it, and book it early.
The name Abocar comes from a Spanish verb meaning "to get closer" — which points directly at Guardianelli's approach. The cooking sits at the intersection of Argentine sensibility and the classical technique he absorbed working in Michelin-starred kitchens across France, Spain, and Italy. That background shows in the discipline of the cooking: the menu is tightly edited, focused on a small number of recipes built around seasonal produce, and executed with the kind of precision you would expect from a chef who trained at that level.
What makes Abocar worth a detour rather than just a local recommendation is how cleanly those two registers — South American instinct and French-Italian rigour , coexist without either cancelling the other out. The menu does not read as fusion in the bloated sense. It reads as a chef with a clear point of view working in a tradition he understands technically. The Opinionated About Dining guide ranked it #404 in Europe for 2025, which places it in serious company: to understand where that sits, consider that [Osteria Francescana in Modena](https://www.joinpearl.co/restaurants/osteria-francescana), [Dal Pescatore in Runate](https://www.joinpearl.co/restaurants/dal-pescatore-runate-restaurant), [Enoteca Pinchiorri in Florence](https://www.joinpearl.co/restaurants/enoteca-pinchiorri), [Le Calandre in Rubano](https://www.joinpearl.co/restaurants/le-calandre-rubano-restaurant), and [Enrico Bartolini in Milan](https://www.joinpearl.co/restaurants/enrico-bartolini-milan-restaurant) all occupy that same European classical conversation. Abocar earns its place in that list by doing less, more carefully , a short menu where every dish is accountable.
For comparison within the creative tasting-menu category, the Paris flagships [Alléno Paris au Pavillon Ledoyen](https://www.joinpearl.co/restaurants/allno-paris-au-pavillon-ledoyen-paris-restaurant) and [Arpège](https://www.joinpearl.co/restaurants/arpge-paris-restaurant) represent the upper end of that classical-creative axis. Abocar is not playing at that scale or price point, but it is playing in the same tradition. For what it costs at €€€ in a mid-size Italian city, the technical ambition is unusual.
The atmosphere at Abocar lands somewhere between relaxed and considered , not the hushed reverence of a three-star dining room, and not the noise of a popular trattoria either. The energy is young, the room has warmth rather than formality, and Guardianelli's partner Camilla runs the front of house in a way that keeps service personal without being theatrical. For a special occasion dinner, that calibration matters: you get the quality without the stiffness that can make a celebration feel like a performance.
This makes it a better choice for a birthday dinner or an anniversary than a formal business meal where you need the room to impress through ceremony. The setting is the old city of Rimini , quieter streets, away from the coastal resort energy , which gives the evening a different character than dining on the seafront. If atmosphere and conversation matter as much as what's on the plate, this combination works well. The Google rating sits at 4.7 across 634 reviews, which, for a Michelin-starred restaurant with a creative tasting format, reflects a consistent and broadly accessible experience rather than a polarising one.
Diners considering Rimini's other creative option, [i-Fame](https://www.joinpearl.co/restaurants/i-fame-rimini-restaurant), should note the gap in ambition and price: i-Fame sits at €€ and offers a lighter creative format. For a genuinely special occasion where the cooking needs to carry the evening, Abocar is the stronger choice at this price tier.
Abocar operates dinner only, seven evenings a week except Tuesday, from 7 PM to 10 PM. There is no lunch service, which means there is no lower-cost entry point during the day. At €€€ pricing for a Michelin-starred tasting menu, this is a committed evening out rather than a casual drop-in. Booking is classified as hard , the combination of the Michelin star, the OAD Europe ranking, and a format that appears to seat a limited number of covers means availability closes up quickly. Book as far ahead as possible; two to three weeks minimum is a reasonable working assumption for weekend dates, and the full menu format suggests reservations are always required.
The address is Via Carlo Farini, 13/15, in the old town. For a full picture of where Abocar sits within Rimini's dining options, [our full Rimini restaurants guide](https://www.joinpearl.co/restaurants/rimini) covers the city across price points and formats. If you are planning a broader trip, [our Rimini hotels guide](https://www.joinpearl.co/hotels/rimini), [bars guide](https://www.joinpearl.co/bars/rimini), [wineries guide](https://www.joinpearl.co/wineries/rimini), and [experiences guide](https://www.joinpearl.co/experiences/rimini) are all available.
For context within the northern Italian creative tasting-menu category, [Atelier Moessmer Norbert Niederkofler in Brunico](https://www.joinpearl.co/restaurants/atelier-moessmer-norbert-niederkofler-brunico-restaurant) represents the high-alpine end of that spectrum. Abocar is the Adriatic answer , different produce logic, different cultural inflection, same level of seriousness.
Quick reference: Dinner only, Tue closed, 7–10 PM; €€€; Michelin 1 Star (2024); OAD Europe #404 (2025); book at least 2–3 weeks ahead for weekends; old Rimini, Via Carlo Farini 13/15.
See the comparison section below for how Abocar sits against [Guido](https://www.joinpearl.co/restaurants/guido-rimini-restaurant), [Da Lucio](https://www.joinpearl.co/restaurants/da-lucio-rimini-restaurant), [Dallo Zio](https://www.joinpearl.co/restaurants/dallo-zio-rimini-restaurant), [Quartopiano](https://www.joinpearl.co/restaurants/quartopiano-rimini-restaurant), and others in Rimini's dining scene.
| Venue | Price | Booking Difficulty | Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Abocar Due Cucine | €€€ | Hard | — |
| Guido | €€€ | Unknown | — |
| Da Lucio | €€€ | Unknown | — |
| Osteria de Börg | € | Unknown | — |
| Dallo Zio | €€ | Unknown | — |
| i-Fame | €€ | Unknown | — |
Comparing your options in Rimini for this tier.
For a more traditional Adriatic seafood experience, Guido and Da Lucio are the obvious comparisons — both are Rimini institutions with a stronger regional focus. Osteria de Börg and Dallo Zio offer more casual local cooking at a lower price point. If you want a Michelin-recognised kitchen with a genuinely different culinary perspective, Abocar is the only option in Rimini with that credential.
Abocar serves dinner only, running 7 PM to 10 PM every night except Tuesday. There is no lunch service, so a daytime visit is not possible. Plan accordingly and note that Tuesday closures rule out early-week bookings.
The atmosphere at Abocar is described as youthful and relaxed rather than formal, so a strict dress code is unlikely. That said, this is a Michelin-starred kitchen at a €€€ price point — arriving dressed neatly is a reasonable baseline. Leave the beachwear in the hotel.
Bar seating is not documented in the available venue data for Abocar. Given its format as a focused creative restaurant in a small room in old Rimini, bar dining is unlikely to be the standard format — check the venue's official channels to confirm seating options before assuming walk-in flexibility.
Specific dishes are not listed in the venue record, and Abocar's menu is seasonal and deliberately short. The kitchen's identity centres on Argentine-influenced creativity built on classical French, Spanish, and Italian technique — expect a concise menu rather than a broad carte. Committing to whatever the kitchen is running that season is the right approach here.
At €€€ in Rimini — a city not known for high-end dining spend — Abocar represents reasonable value for a Michelin-starred meal, particularly given the restaurant's stated aim of keeping gourmet cooking accessibly priced. Ranked #404 in Opinionated About Dining's Classical Europe list (2025), it has peer credibility beyond just its local star. If creative cooking with South American influence interests you, yes, it's worth it.
Yes, with a caveat on format: the room is relaxed and youthful rather than grand, so if you need ceremony and theatrics, this is not the right choice. For a couple or small group who want a Michelin-starred meal without a stiff atmosphere, Abocar works well — the informal warmth is a feature, not a compromise.
Keep this venue in your Pearl passport, rate it after you visit, and track it alongside every other place you collect.
