Lake Garda's gastronomic specialities
Enjoy sampling these delicious dishes!
Piatti (dishes)Alborelle – small fried fish from the lake – similar to whitebait
Canederli – Austrian style liver dumplings mainly eaten in the north particularly to accompany pot roasts
Carne salata – salt-cured beef - the speciality of the Trentino par excellence
Carpione – the Lake Garda trout has become rare; if it does happen to appear on the menu you should snap it up.
Coniglio – rabbit, and not only popular in the roast version: cut into strips, it is also served as part of a ‘sugo’ or pasta sauce.
Funghi sott’olio – mushrooms in oil, typical component of an ‘antipasto misto’ or a plate of mixed starters.
Gnocchi – tiny lumps of potato-based dough; served as a ‘primo’ like the pasta dishes, i.e. eaten as a separate course after the ‘antipasti’ and before the main course.
Lavarello – freshwater whitefish caught straight from Lake Garda – if you’re lucky! Frequently grilled.
Prosciutto con melone – (Parma) ham with fresh melon, a classic among the ‘antipasti’
Strangolapreti – ‘priest strangler’. These gnocchi of spinach and bread taste best when tossed in butter and garnished with crispy fried leaves of sage.
Tartufo – truffle. The rare tuber grows around Monte Baldo; best enjoyed in fine slices over fresh pasta or fried eggs.
Trota – trout. Usually come from the rivers and streams in the region rather than the lake. Delicious as blue trout or trout meuniere.
Bevande (drinks)
Bardolino – a red wine from the eastern shore: light, bright red, only rarely of outstanding quality
Birra alla spina – draught beer. In Italy a meal with pizza is usually accompanied by beer rather than wine.
Lugana – a white wine from the lake shore, goes well with fish and pasta
Marzemino – Trentino red wine, heavy, ruby red, velvety
Teroldego – Trentino red wine, heavy, fruity, full-bodied
