What to Eat in Lucca: Farro, Tordelli, and the Lucchese Table

Lucca has a food identity distinct from the Florence-centred Tuscan mainstream. The Lucchese kitchen looks north and west — toward the Garfagnana mountains and the Versilia coast — for its ingredients, and has preserved a set of products and dishes that are genuinely local.

What to Eat

Tordelli lucchesi — Lucca’s defining pasta. Ravioli-like stuffed pasta with a meat and herb filling that varies by family recipe — typically beef or pork, with Swiss chard, pine nuts, raisins, and spices. Served with a meat ragù rather than butter. Different from any other stuffed pasta in Tuscany.

Farro della Garfagnana — spelt (farro) grown in the mountain valleys above Lucca. The Garfagnana has an IGP for its farro, which is nuttier and more aromatic than the varieties grown on the plains. Used in soups (zuppa di farro) and as a salad grain. The soup — with borlotti beans, vegetables, and sometimes sausage — is the essential Lucchese first course.

Biroldo garfagnino — a dark, spiced blood sausage from the Garfagnana, made with pig’s head meat, offal, and blood, seasoned with spices and pine nuts. Unique to the area. Served sliced as an antipasto.

Montemagno pork — the Lucca hills produce excellent pork products: lardo di Colonnata-adjacent cured pork fat, salami, and prosciutto from small producers in the hills around Montemagno.

Buccellato di Lucca — the city’s traditional sweet bread, made with anise, raisins, and a light sugar glaze. Sold in a ring shape from a single historic bakery (Pasticceria Taddeucci on Piazza San Michele) that has been making it the same way since 1881. Not for export; eat it in Lucca.

Cecina — the Lucchese name for farinata — a thin chickpea flatbread baked at high heat. Found in bakeries as a lunchtime staple. Eaten with black pepper.

Wine and Oil

Colline Lucchesi DOC — Sangiovese-based reds and Trebbiano-based whites from the hills around the city. Modest in profile but local and worth trying in the city’s better trattorias.

Lucca is one of Italy’s finest olive oil regions. The oil from the Lucchese hills (Olio Extra Vergine DOP Lucca) is fruity, peppery, and fresh — among the best in Tuscany. Buy it directly from producers in the market or from specialist food shops.

Where to Eat

The market on Piazza San Michele (daily) and the indoor market have excellent local produce. The streets inside the walls, particularly around Via Fillungo and the medieval towers, have the best trattoria concentration. Avoid the restaurants directly facing the most touristed piazzas — the streets one block back are better and cheaper.