A table at La Loggia overlooking Florence.

La Loggia, overlooking Florence. Photo by Mattia Aquila Photography

5 restaurants in Europe where the food is perfect like the scenery

09 Jun 2025

Journalist

These must-visit restaurants combine stunning food with equally impressive views and ambience, all the inspiration you need for your next trip

The summer holiday season is underway, which means long, meandering lunches followed by naps in the shade and late dinners followed by ice cream and pondering just how late is too late for children (yours or other people’s) to still be up. There’s something magical about those holiday meals, where the setting, food, temperature and general sense of wellbeing combine to create memorable experiences. But it's not always about the food; sometimes, you’re having so much fun or feeling so relaxed that you can let an average meal fly.

Or what about those internet-famous spots that are unfortunately all about the ‘gram without much substance? You may even have based your travel plans around them. Yes, you’ll get the shot and the dopamine hit when you post, but ultimately you leave unsatisfied.

There aren’t many restaurants that are the complete package, but these five are. Here you’ll find fabulous food, enjoyed in beautiful surroundings, some offering stunning views, others just an all-round ambience that will make you exhale long and deeply. What’s more, they’re all Fine Dining Lovers-approved: taste tested by us.

If you haven’t booked your next trip yet and are unsure where to go, let this guide narrow the field for you, because we all know food and travel go together like sea and sand.

Cantina

Carved into the cliff in a small cove on Sifnos, Greece’s most famously foodie island, Cantina has been serving a modern, zero-waste interpretation of the local cuisine since 2020. The man behind it, Chef-Owner Giorgos Samoilis, is a former molecular biologist, yet nothing feels overly fancy or fiddly on the daily changing menu – contemporary but humble is the style. The same goes for the setting, which speaks for itself: your meal, including supremely fresh seafood, is served to you on a buzzy terrace overlooking the sea. Top tip: head to the nearby hilltop town of Kastro for a pre-dinner drink and visit the much-photographed Church of the Seven Martyrs.

ION Harbour

British farm-to-table king Simon Rogan’s Malta outpost is located in the five-star Iniala Harbour House hotel in Valletta, overlooking the majestic Grand Harbour. The restaurant too is starred, having picked up a second Michelin star in 2024. Out on the terrace, following the comings and goings in the harbour is the place to be, as you enjoy a faultless tasting menu of Rogan’s signature style of brilliant produce, cooked with care and full of flavour, plated elegantly. Expect a couple of Rogan classics too like a version of his caramelised miso dessert and likely, some duck too.

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Lo Scoglio

You may have seen Lo Scoglio on Stanley Tucci’s Searching for Italy and salivated over their signature spaghetti alla Nerano, a simple pasta dish of courgettes, basil and cheese. We’re happy to say that the food and the setting at this hotel and restaurant on the Amalfi Coast are as sublime as you would hope (you may remember Tucci’s show didn’t do full justice to just how idyllic it is, his visit coinciding with an enormous thunderstorm). The restaurant sits out on an enormous rock (scoglio) with views over the blue Tyrrhenian Sea, where you may see the odd megayacht parked up with its custodians whizzing towards the restaurant’s jetty (hiya, Steven Spielberg) on a tender for a taste of the aforementioned pasta and possibly the best tomatoes you’ll ever eat. Rooms are simple and comfortable.

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Ræst

While Ræst can’t offer views to rival the other restaurants on this list, it has many things going for it. Firstly the incredibly dramatic landscapes of the Faroe Islands, where the restaurant is located (in the capital, Tórshavn) that will punctuate your trip and etch themselves in your memory. Secondly, the cosy interiors of the traditional, 17th-century, grass-roofed house, reached via narrow cobblestone lanes, where the restaurant is housed, giving the experience a homely and unpretentious feel. And thirdly, chef Sebastian Jiménez’s inventive tasting menu, which celebrates traditional Faroese techniques with a Mexican twist. Expect lots of fermented meats, foraged flowers and Mexican spice.

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Villa San Michele, a Belmond Hotel

Closed until 2026 for renovations, Villa San Michele should still be on your radar. Driving up to this converted Renaissance monastery in the Fiesole hills above Florence, close to where Leonardo Da Vinci conducted flying experiments, feels like a scene from Succession such is the restrained grandeur. Then there are the views, with the city sprawled out below you in all its terracotta glory. The food offering is overseen by chef Alessandro Cozzolino (pictured), with several restaurants to choose from: the fine-dining La Loggia, Ristorante San Michele and the San Michele Grill by the pool, which serves possibly the best pizza in Florence. All have that view. Special mention should also be made of the excellent breakfast Viennoiserie, which is baked onsite.

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