Best Italian Restaurants in Cheltenham: A Local's Guide to Pasta, Pizza and Proper Trattorias

Italian food is one of those things Cheltenham has quietly got very right. For a town that earns most of its national press for racing and Regency architecture, the Italian dining scene here punches well above its weight, with a proper spread of family-run trattorias, regional kitchens, wood-fired pizzerias and street food spots all within easy walking distance of the Promenade. If your default Italian in Cheltenham is whichever chain happens to be closest, you've been missing the better half of the picture.

This is a local's guide to the best Italian restaurants in Cheltenham. The places locals actually book for birthdays, the family-run kitchens that take the slow approach to dough, and the spots worth knowing about whether you want a Tuesday plate of pasta or a Saturday-night blow-out. We'll cover the independents first, where the real character lives, and then handle the chains briefly so you know where they fit.

A note on bookings before you read on. Saturday evening tables at the better Italian restaurants in Cheltenham fill up several days ahead, particularly through festival season. Plan accordingly.

Why Cheltenham's Italian Scene Has Quietly Got Very Good

A decade ago, this article would have been a much shorter read. Cheltenham had a couple of family Italians, the usual chains, and not a lot in between. The story has changed. The town now has independent kitchens taking handmade pasta seriously, a Pittville spot rated among the highest-scoring restaurants in town, and a proper Neapolitan pizzeria sitting just off Imperial Square.

The pattern is the same one driving the rest of Cheltenham's restaurant scene. Independent operators, regional ambition, and an audience of locals and visitors who are happy to spend on something done well. Italian, as a category, is also unusually well-suited to Cheltenham's architectural setting. Period dining rooms, terraced streets and walkable neighbourhoods do flatter a glass of Barolo and a plate of tagliatelle.

Nasprias: The Best Italian Restaurant in Cheltenham, According to Locals

If you ask a local where to go for proper Italian food in Cheltenham, the odds are strong that Nasprias comes up first. Tucked away on Hewlett Road in Pittville, this family-run kitchen has built a devoted following on the back of one simple idea, which is doing traditional Italian cooking properly.

The pasta is handmade, the doughs are slow-proved for between 48 and 72 hours, and the menu leans into regional cooking rather than the usual greatest-hits format. Dishes from Emilia Romagna get a serious airing, including a slow-cooked pork and beef ragù that locals talk about long after the plates are cleared. The atmosphere is warm and family-run rather than themed, which is exactly how a good neighbourhood Italian should feel.

What to order at Nasprias

Start with the antipasti and a pizza al taglio if there's a group of you sharing. Then go straight for whichever pasta the kitchen is leaning into that week. The tiramisu is, by some distance, the standout dessert. Pittville isn't quite the Promenade in terms of foot traffic, but Nasprias is genuinely worth the short walk from the Pittville neighbourhood or a quick taxi from town.

Primavera Ristorante: Montpellier's Regional Italian Stalwart

Primavera Ristorante on Montpellier Terrace has been doing serious Italian food in Cheltenham for years, and the kitchen still runs with the kind of confidence you only get from doing the same thing well over and over. They make their pasta, breads and pizza dough in house, and dishes are cooked fresh to order. That's not unusual to claim, but it is unusual to actually taste in the finished plate.

The menu reads like a small tour through the regions of Italy. There are handmade pastas that genuinely taste handmade, risottos that arrive with the right creamy wobble, and seafood dishes that often feature whatever has come in fresh that day. The setting is classic neighbourhood Italian, polished but never stiff, and the location puts you in the heart of Montpellier, which is the right side of town for an evening out anyway.

Primavera is the kind of place locals book for anniversaries, in-laws, and any night that calls for genuinely good Italian without a special-occasion price tag.

Settebello at Belgrave House: Where to Book for a Special Occasion

If you want to feel like you've made an evening of it, Settebello inside Belgrave House on Imperial Square is the Italian to book. The setting is part of the appeal. High ceilings, period features and the elegant Imperial Square frontage do most of the heavy lifting before the kitchen has to do anything at all. Then the kitchen turns up too, with proper fresh pasta, classic Italian dishes done with care, and a wine list that knows its way around the regions.

It's a special-occasion Italian rather than a Tuesday-night one, and the prices reflect that. Worth knowing about for birthdays, anniversaries, and any meal where the Imperial Square setting matters. Settebello also runs a popular bottomless Sunday brunch, with arancini and bruschetta to start, then pizza or pasta to follow. For more of Cheltenham's brunch options, it's a strong addition to the Sunday lineup.

Gianni Ristorante: A Reliable Cheltenham Italian Since the 1990s

Just off the Promenade near Royal Well, Gianni's has been feeding Cheltenham proper Italian food since 1996. It's the kind of restaurant that doesn't need to chase trends because it already knows what it's doing. The menu spans classic pasta, wood-fired pizzas and daily specials that lean into the season, and the dining room strikes that nice balance between smart enough for a special evening and casual enough for a midweek catch-up.

What locals appreciate about Gianni's is the consistency. Whether you walk in for a quick pre-theatre dinner before the Everyman or settle in for a longer Saturday meal, the food and service hold up. It's a strong default Italian for visitors who want something properly local rather than a chain, and the Royal Well Place location is a two-minute walk from the Town Centre and the Promenade.

PORKETTA: Italian Street Food on the High Street

PORKETTA on the High Street is doing something different, and doing it brilliantly. This family-run Italian operation focuses on porchetta, the slow-roasted Italian pork that you'd usually only find at a market in central Italy, served in proper crusty rolls that hold up. The crackling shatters, the meat melts, and the herb mix lands somewhere between Tuscan and Lazio. It's Italian street food done with conviction.

What is porchetta and why is it worth trying?

Porchetta is a centuries-old Italian dish where pork is deboned, seasoned heavily with herbs (typically rosemary, fennel, garlic and pepper), rolled, and slow-roasted until the skin crackles and the meat is meltingly tender. PORKETTA serves it the way it's eaten in central Italy. In a roll, with a glass of something cold, no fuss. The menu also covers a few classic Italian sides and pastas, but the porchetta roll is the dish to come for.

If you've already worked through the best pizza in Cheltenham and want to widen your Italian range, PORKETTA is the obvious next stop.

Bosco Pizzeria: Where to Go for Proper Wood-Fired Italian Pizza

Tucked into The Quadrangle just off Imperial Square, Bosco brings serious wood-fired pizza to Cheltenham. The oven is the centrepiece, the dough is made fresh daily, and the pizzas come out with the kind of leopard-spotted char you'd hope for from a Neapolitan-style bake. The menu is short and focused, which is always the right signal in a pizzeria.

Bosco isn't trying to be a full-service Italian, and that's part of the appeal. Wine, pizza, a few starters, and you're done. It pairs particularly well with a pre-theatre slot at the Everyman or a casual evening with friends. For dedicated pizza fans, our full guide to the best pizza in Cheltenham covers the wider scene including Fat Toni's, Saint Pizza and the by-the-slice specialists.

What About the Italian Chains in Cheltenham?

The chains have their place, particularly when you've got a big group, fussy eaters, or a midweek family dinner where the priority is getting fed quickly. Cheltenham has the usual suspects.

Zizzi at St James Church is genuinely worth a mention for the building alone. The converted St James Church on Suffolk Square is one of Cheltenham's most striking dining rooms, with soaring ceilings and original ecclesiastical features. The menu is standard Zizzi, but the setting elevates it.

Prezzo has two Cheltenham branches, one on the Promenade and one in the Brewery Quarter. Both work well as reliable, no-surprises Italian for shoppers, families or pre-cinema dinners. ASK Italian sits right opposite Montpellier Gardens on Montpellier Walk and has a sun trap of an outdoor terrace for warmer days. None of these are why you visit Cheltenham, but they're solid when an independent isn't an option.

How to Choose the Right Italian Restaurant in Cheltenham

It depends entirely on the kind of evening you're planning, and which side of town you're starting from.

Which Italian restaurant in Cheltenham has the best handmade pasta?

Nasprias and Primavera are the two names that matter for proper handmade pasta in Cheltenham. Nasprias leans into Emilia Romagna recipes with deep, slow-cooked ragùs. Primavera covers the regions of Italy more broadly and focuses on cooking everything fresh to order. Both are independent, both are family-run, and both are well worth the booking effort.

Do I need to book ahead for Italian restaurants in Cheltenham?

For Saturday evening at any of the independents (Nasprias, Primavera, Settebello, Gianni), yes. Aim a few days ahead, longer during festival season. Midweek is easier, but the better tables still go fast at peak times. The chains and PORKETTA are more flexible, though Settebello's Sunday bottomless brunch books out well in advance too.

Which Italian restaurant in Cheltenham is best for a special occasion?

Settebello at Belgrave House is the strongest pick for a proper occasion meal. The Imperial Square setting carries the night before the food arrives, and the kitchen knows it. Primavera is a close second if you'd rather be in Montpellier.

The Verdict: Cheltenham's Italian Scene Is Worth Taking Seriously

Cheltenham's Italian scene rewards a bit of effort. Skip the obvious chain on the Promenade, walk a little further, and you'll find handmade pasta in Pittville, regional cooking in Montpellier, proper porchetta on the High Street and wood-fired pizza on Imperial Square. None of these places are trying to be the next big thing. They're just doing Italian food properly, the way it's done in the regions of Italy where the recipes started.

Pick the right one for the night you're planning, book ahead for the weekend, and you'll see why locals quietly rate Cheltenham as one of the better Italian dining towns in the South West. For the full editorially scored list of Cheltenham's best restaurants, Italian and otherwise, the directory is your starting point.

Meta Description (150-160 chars): The best Italian restaurants in Cheltenham, from Pittville's quiet star to Montpellier favourites. A local's guide to handmade pasta, pizza and trattorias.