Pastamara Bar con Cucina

50 Top Italy 2024: no. 26 of the best Italian restaurants outside Italy

Pastamara, a bar con cucina or bar with a kitchen, is the Italian restaurant of the Ritz-Carlton on Schubertring. The concept comes from the starred chef Ciccio Sultano, who runs the Ristorante Duomo in Ragusa Ibla; Vienna was his first project outside Italy. Inspired by his home town, Pastamara brings the cooking and the way of life of Sicily to the Ring, carried out by a team on site. In the 50 Top Italy ranking, which rates Italian restaurants worldwide, Pastamara featured for the third time in the 2024 edition.

The menu combines traditional Sicilian recipes with modern touches. The Guide MICHELIN singles out the vitello tonnato and the spaghetti with gambero and lemon, and for dessert the cannolo siciliano, a crisp fried pastry tube filled with ricotta cream. In the evening there is a six-course surprise menu alongside the menu, and on weekday lunchtimes a two-course business lunch. The guide highlights the wine list as particularly interesting.

At the centre of the room is a large open bar where you can also eat, ideal for a plate of pasta after an evening at the nearby Konzerthaus or for lunch between two appointments. The combination of a hotel setting and a relaxed bar atmosphere makes Pastamara an accessible address for upmarket Sicilian cooking. It is open every day from 10am to 11pm.