Typical food in Val Gardena

On your first visit to Val Gardena, you may be surprised to find out that although you’re in Italy, the dishes in the huts and restaurants are very different from what you will find in more southern regions of the country. In fact, many traditional dishes of the region – South Tyrol - are historically closer to Austro-Hungaric cuisine than Italian. They are absolutely delicious!

Here are the most typical dishes you should try when in Val Gardena. We included Italian and German names so you may find them more easily on menus.

Dumplings

Not related to their Chinese namesakes in the least, the Tyrolean version of dumplings (ital. Canederli, germ. Knödel) are basically giant gnocchi made of bread, milk and eggs. Dumplings come in several different flavours, the most popular being cheese, speck, mushrooms, spinach or liver. They may be served in broth or accompanied by goulash.

Crafuncins

These bite-sized crescents are the stuff dreams are made of. Crafuncins (ital. Mezzelune, germ. Schlutzkrapfen) are filled with spinach and ricotta cheese, these little pasta bites are boiled and then served with molten butter and grated parmesan cheese. Heaven!

Goulash

Goulash (Gulasch) is a hearty meat stew and is quite popular all over the Alps. Every chef has his own, unique recipe for making it. Goulash is great when combined with polenta or spätzle!

Barley Soup

Barley soup (ital. Zuppa d’Orzo, germ. Gerstensuppe) is a local favourite. Perfect as an entrée, it is most frequently eaten in autumn but can be found on menus year round. Give it a try if you’re into hearty soups!

Game Meat

Being surrounded by mountains and forests, Val Gardena’s restaurants offer several types of locally hunted game meat (ital. Selvaggina, germ. Wild). You’ll mostly find Deer (ital. Capriolo, germ. Reh) and Stag (ital. Cervo, germ. Hirsch), and sometimes Boar (ital. Cinghiale, germ. Wildschwein). The rarest of all is Chamois (ital. Camoscio, germ. Gams) – this one you’ll usually find in Salami or Kaminwurz form only.

Speck & Schüttelbrot

If you’re a fan of cold cuts and cured meats, you absolutely have to try Speck. It may be the most notorious culinary product of South Tyrol. This pork cut is special because it is spiced, smoked and then aged. Speck finds its way into several local dishes, but the best way to enjoy it is to cut it into little strips and eat it with Schüttelbrot, a hard, spiced bread just as typical to South Tyrol. Speck and Schüttelbrot have been the favourite afternoon snack of the region for centuries – for good reason!

Strudel

Strudel is one of the most renowned desserts in the Alps. This layered pastry is filled with cooked apples, raisins and cinnamon, although recipes vary. Strudel is usually served with powdered sugar and vanilla sauce – fantastic!

Kaiserschmarrn

This sweet dish is another local favourite. It’s basically a broken up pancake sprinkled with powdered sugar, and is eaten with raisins and berry jam. Simple, but truly a dessert worthy of an emperor (“Kaiser”)!

While you will find traditional dishes in most restaurants in Val Gardena and mountain huts around the valley, there are some venues who actually specialize on local cuisine. These are your best bets if you want to explore the tastes of our region.

Paratoni Farm

You can’t get more Ladin than the Paratoni mountain farm restaurant in Santa Cristina. Located inside an almost 800 year old house (one of the oldest in the Alps), this family-run venue specializes on local cuisine and uses mostly home-grown ingredients.

Cows and chickens produce the milk and eggs Paratoni needs, and the vegetables come from their own vegetable patch. The restaurant’s menu is fixed and changes seasonally. Paratoni is open in summer and winter season, but only on Friday and Saturday – reservation mandatory!