Al Tuguri & the Algherese Table
Alghero's kitchen is unlike anywhere else in Sardinia — a centuries-old fusion of Catalan technique and island ingredients that produces dishes you will not find on any other menu in Italy. The narrow Via Maiorca address of Al Tuguri is where that tradition is most faithfully kept alive.
What to order
Start with the dish that defines the city: aragosta alla catalana — Sardinian spiny lobster poached and served cold with tomato, red onion and a drizzle of olive oil, a recipe brought over from Barcelona in the 14th century. Follow it with fregola, the toasted semolina pellets unique to Sardinia, cooked risotto-style with clams and bottarga (cured fish roe).
For meat lovers, porceddu — slow-roasted suckling pig with crackling skin — is the island's great celebratory dish and appears on many menus. Finish with seadas: deep-fried pastry pillows filled with fresh pecorino and drizzled with bitter honey. Every bite is a small revelation.
Where to sit and sip
Al Tuguri on Via Maiorca is widely regarded as the most coherent address for properly Algherese cooking, with a short, seasonal menu and staff who can walk you through every ingredient. For a sea-view dinner, Enhorabona on Via Garibaldi 101 has a terrace over the Mediterranean and a menu that runs from generous antipasti through Sardinian-style pasta to grilled fish of the day.
Wash everything down with a chilled Vermentino di Sardegna — the local white grape produces a crisp, slightly saline wine that is the natural partner for every seafood dish on the table. For something richer, ask for a glass of Cannonau with the suckling pig.
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