Osteria de Scarpon

Solid seafood restaurant with improvement potential. STARTERS: The homemade baccalà was the highlight of our dinner: its richness and creamy texture paired perfectly with the warm, freshly grilled toast. The seafood antipasti platter, however, presented a mixed experience—some seafood bits were slightly chewy and overwhelmed by a strong garlic taste. MAINS: Both the seafood risotto as well as the crab spaghetti bursted with delightful seafood goodness, sadly, however, both were overly salty. The grilled sea bass filet on the other had, was perfectly cooked and had a fantastic texture. The panko crusted mushrooms added a delightful crunch to the ensemble. DESSERT: Unfortunately, the millefeuille left a bitter aftertaste in the dining experience—a huge disappointment with its wet, soft puff pastry, and clotted pastry cream, indicating its age. In hindsight, returning it for a different dessert would have been the correct thing to do. The service was very efficient, executing their tasks with precision. However, the overall dining experience was marred by the overly salted risotto and pasta, along with the bad millefeuille, resulting in a somewhat mediocre dinner at a fair price.

Eating at Scarpon is an experience that one must go through to be able to say they ate in Trieste. I now live abroad but Scarpon is still a place I visit regularly whenever I get a chance. The last occasion for us was for my Dad's 80th birthday. The staff celebrated it with the most surprising fireworks candle and birthday song I could have dreamt for. That admittedly stole a bit the show to the rest of the dinner that as always was tasty and incredibly abundant. Their "capesante gratinate" are some of the best one can find in Trieste (and I would say in the world, since Trieste seems to have its own special version that is different from anywhere else in the world). The incredibly popular "pasta allo scoglio" is beautiful and a HUGE portion. That alone is an experience. The fish in it is super tasty. I must say that this time I found the sauce to be too light, almost like it would have worked for half the quantity of pasta. But I have been there many times and always loved it, so I am comfortable it was just that time. Sparkling house white wine is a joy to drink. The staff is super friendly and familiar and they clearly care about making people enjoy the night. The atmosphere is incredibly low key and yet it's quite common to find famous faces as guests. A non-trivial small to close, particularly rare to say these days: Scarpon is cheap for what they offer.

In my opinion a hidden gem. Our host gave us the advise to try the Osteria de Scarpon. I'm usually not a big fan of seafood, but this was just really good. They have english menus, if you ask for them. The service was really good too. A good restaurant to try calamari and local triestian cuisine!

This meal was excellent. I started with an unreal grilled octopus over burratta with tomatoes and olive oil, followed by a perfectly cooked al dente squid ink tortelli with salmon and a cream sauce, followed again by a simple grilled swordfish. All paired with an unassuming sparkling house white wine. Topped off with a tiramisu which they claimed was the best in the city…. And,OMG, it was the best I’ve ever had. The cream wasn’t whipped but was a real, flowing, viscous cream, nicely sweet and a perfect complement to the ladyfingers. So good. And the octopus was one of the best dishes I’ve had during my entire 9 months in Europe…

You cannot visit Trieste without visiting this restaurant as well! This medium sized restaurant is located right in the center of the city (= parking is a nightmare, you better use public transportation), and specializes in fish, seafood and local cuisine. I have been to this restaurant many times and it has never disappointed: the food is AMAZING; they have very good wines and after-meals-drinks as well; and the prices are very decent. Since it is always full of people (also because it has a lot of regulars on a daily basis!), you need to make reservations well in advance. Despite being extremely busy all the times, the staff is always very professional. I look forward to go back!

Delicious food at a great price. Some of the best and freshest seafood I've ever had including places that cost 5x more. Portions are large and servers are friendly. Menu updated daily. Recommend the fish and chips when on the menu. Owner is very kind.

Traditional and simple restaurant with the excellent seafood menu . One cannot go wrong if choses to eat at Scarpon. I know the restaurant for 12 years.

We were lucky to get into this place without a reservation. Super lovely local feel, charming casual decor, and delicious food for a good price. We were going to order another plate but the waitress warned us the portions were big and she was right!