Naples - Europe's best street food
Strolling the food stalls of Naples is understanding the city’s culture, traditions and pride. Mobile cooking-stations, kiosks, cafés, tiny eateries, food markets and other street food havens are the city’s law and order. Take these away and Naples would run into real chaos.
The perfumes of freshly-baked dough, deep-fried seafood, milky mozzarella balls, stuffed rice suppli, freshly-made tomato sauce and other delicacies will convert even the most resistant to street food feasts. It is no wonder that Naples and street food have formed the strongest of marriages, transcending centuries of change. The southern capital is intimately linked to its land. Naples’ volcanic soils, proffered by its giant guardian Mount Vesuvius, are tremendous fertile ground for everything that springs out of the earth. The Bay of Naples is a dip away from the best seafood treasures. Its backyard is nothing less than the stunning Campania region, known for its family farms, splendid countryside and the devilishly delicious buffalo mozzarella, from where it originates.Its sun-kissed climate is the supreme mighty whisk, working its magic on both land and sea. Last but not least, it is Neapolitan passion that blends and mixes all these elements, transforming the raw gifts of nature into the fruits of fantastic, creative, proud human effort.
Neapolitans’ connection to their rich natural surroundings has made their street food one of the world’s most revered, and absurdly friendly to wallets too!
Ready for the best street food in Naples? Here we go:
Il Cuoppo Friggitori Napoletani
This is one of the best street food stalls for fried seafood in Naples. Located in the historical centre, the stand offers many variations of all things fried, from fried vegetables to fried mozzarella balls, all wrapped in a paper cone the Neapolitan way. Its house speciality is the mouth-watering fried seafood mix, freshly prepared in just a few minutes, for just €6. Portions are very generous so your money goes far and beyond here!ilcuoppo.it
Image: Street Food
Friggitoria Vomero
Another great fried snack bar, decades-old in the art of fried Neapolitan appetisers. Here you must try the zeppole, arancini, omelette di maccheroni pasta, fried potatoes and zucchini flowers. Located next to Naples’ funicular, this street food bar is a great stop before or after your funicular ride or both! Prices vary between €0.20-2 apiece.Via Cimarosa, 44
The pizzeria Di Matteo
For the best street pizza in Naples, head to the family-run pizzeria di Matteo, on Via Tribunali near Piazza San Gaetano. This is the place for typical Neapolitan pizza, both oven or fried, in a typical Neapolitan atmosphere. The pizzeria is jammed, shouty and chaotic - exactly where you want to have your traditional, authentic pizza in Naples. Even Bill Clinton squeezed in for his share of pizza during his visit to Naples in 1994. No fancy, no fuss. Just pizza. Go for the Margherita, the most typical pizzas of all! Prices vary between €2-6.
Image: Pizzeria Di Matteo
De' figliole
If you’ve never tried deep-fried pizza before, or 'pizza fritta’, where else to give your palate this intriguing experience than in the capital of pizza itself? De' figliole, in Naples’s historical centre since 1860, has the best-fried pizza in Naples. Calzone-looking or flat, chewy yet slightly crunchy on the edges, fried pizza is a long-standing Neapolitan tradition not to be missed. Observe the women in the kitchen stretch the dough whilst locals rush in for their pick of the day, and don’t hold back as you indulge in one of the oldest traditions of the city! Prices vary between €4-5.Via Giudecca Vecchia, 39
