Il Clandestino

Our best meal in Stresa! My husband overheard a random local store worker telling his customer this was the best restaurant in town. We couldn’t find an available reservation, so we walked in a few minutes before opening on a Wednesday and got lucky with a spot an hr later (keep in mind this was October so not high season). Service was impeccable. We tried the chef’s tasting menu and it was delicious. All fish, my husband asked for more raw fish, I asked for cooked fish dishes. Both worth it. My favorite part was the calamari appetizer and the dessert! Dessert didn’t look like much, but possibly the tastiest Ive ever had. Thank you for a great experience!

Fantastic food, excellent service and wonderful atmosphere in the restaurant made our family dinner for 9 people memorable. The chef is an experienced maestro in the kitchen who explained the menu options in detail and catered to our individual needs. The staff was very friendly and attentive and the food was absolutely delicious. Thank you for a wonderful evening!

What an amazing experience. The chef, who is also the owner, came to take our order and explain his dishes. Service was simply impeccable. Menu is based on what they receive freshly caught from the sea. A seafood only establishment. Expensive but certainly worth it. The breadsticks served on the side were also delicious, I could have eaten the whole basket. Their tiramisu won a pastry award in 2015. Try it and you’ll understand why.

Everything was beyond amazing. Since when does a chef take my order and explain my dishes? Every chef should do this. The absolutely impeccable service was still outshined by the main star of the show...the food! Now everything is made based on what they get fresh caught from the sea. Seafood only at this establishment. So what I ate, you may not have available unless you run here today (which I highly recommend). Seriously, dishes change daily. Started with a lobster and red shrimp ravioli with lemon. Absolutely delicious. No cheese, just flavors of the seafood. This was scrumptious. We had an amazing Sauvignon Blanc. Next was the main course. For my wife fresh amberjack, for myself blue lobster with fois gras. If there is anything I have learned on this trip to northern Italy is that I need to use fois gras more often. My lobster was scrumptious, delicious and I wish I still had more right now. The amberjack was equally amazing, but unfortunately I only had one bite. My wife was enjoying too much to try to take more. The sommelier gave us amazing pairings from Cinque Terre and a Pinot grigio that perfectly matched wife's fish. Both were perfectly paired. Cannot say enough about how pleased we were with the service and the experience overall. Make a reservation.

We had a really good experience. Interesting thematic restaurant, where the chef is also the owner! Chef came to welcome all the new visitors, explained the menu, adviced if needed. We choose menu semi cooked semi raw. All the dishes were perfectly done.

Booked the table for 7:45pm tonight and then took taxi to this restaurant. When we arrived we rejected seat and were told they are full house even we had the booking confirmation. And there were still serving 2-3 tables of guest. It's barely 30% full. And it's on a low season weekday right now. It's very quiet everywhere. Very cold attitude and no apologies, perhaps this restaurant is not aiming for serving travellers. He said he could not stop the system from accepting the bookings. We travel to this part of Italy quite often but 100% won't come back to this restaurant.

Absolutely amazing place!!! The chef is one of the nicest people I’ve ever met, taking the time to personally check on our satisfaction and engage in conversation. The service was impeccable, with staff being attentive and courteous throughout our degustative meal. And the food—oh my god, the food was extraordinary. Each dish was perfectly seasoned and bursting with flavor. Just perfect. Highly recommend!

The Chef’s selection was great! It’s definitely the best meal I had in Italy. The service was also good and it’s a lovely place. I strongly recommend and you’ll never regret.

Amazing food, service and ambiance we loved it. The staff and chef are totally professional and very modern Italian with a great wine list.

Excellent Italian restaurant with a great kitchen and great service. You should trust the recommendation they provide. This is truly an outstanding place. If you like food this is a must.