The Best Italian Restaurants in Byron Bay in 2023
Take your tastebuds on a mouth-watering tour of the Mediterranean with a visit to one of Byron Bay’s top Italian restaurants.
In the last year, we’ve seen a reshuffle of the best Italian restaurants in Byron Bay. Earth’n’Sea bid us a fond farewell nearly 50 years after pulling their first pizzas out of the oven, and local’s favourite The Italian closed its doors for the last time.
But as they say in Italy, la vita va avanti (life goes on), and we’re lucky to have some sensational Italians in Byron. Two restaurants on this list scooped AGFG Chef Hat awards in 2023, two made it into our overall guide to the best restaurants in Byron, and all consistently serve up delicious authentic Italian food.
So throw on something with a loose waistband and head to one of these top Byron Bay Italians for a fantastico meal.
Buon appetito!
Di Vino
Located in the centre of town just back from the beach, Chefs Hat award-winning Di Vino is an unpretentious, authentic Italian with a longstanding reputation for incredible food and friendly service. The menu is predominantly handmade pasta dishes with no pizza. The fresh handmade pasta is a revelation, with a good balance to the range of sauces on offer.
To drink, you’ll find Italian-themed cocktails followed by a comprehensive wine list including plenty of Italian and Australian wines, as well as a section of quality Slovenian wines produced just over the border of northern Italy.
Sit down and takeaway
Find it: 4/2 Fletcher St, Byron Bay
Trattoria Basiloco
Trattoria Basiloco is a family-operated restaurant owned by two Italian brothers and is well-known for its consistently high-quality food. One of our favourite places to get pizza in Byron Bay, the restaurant handmakes its pizza bases and pasta on the premises, and the pizza is cooked in a traditional woodfired oven.
The menu starts with a small sharing section, followed by rustic pasta dishes, while the pizza menu features 12 flavours, all of which can be ordered with a gluten-free base. The restaurant is open and airy, with ample seating inside and a small terrace at the front.
Sit down and takeaway
Find it: 30 Lawson St, Byron Bay
Pizza Paradiso
Located in Suffolk Park, about a ten-minute drive from Byron, Pizza Paradiso predominantly offers pizza and pasta. The menu consists of a tapas and salad section, followed by classic Italian dishes, including pasta, gnocchi, and risotto.
For most people, pizza is the star of the show, and with 28 varieties, there’s plenty of choice for carnivores and vegetarians alike. For kids, there’s a shorter pasta and pizza menu. To go with your meal, you can choose from bottled Italian beers, draft Australian beers, and a selection of wines mostly from Australia and Italy.
Sit down and takeaway
Find it: 1 Clifford St, Suffolk Park
Belongil Beach Italian Food
Note: Belongil Beach Italian Food is closed for renovations until late winter, early spring 2023
The newest addition to the roster of Italian restaurants in Byron Bay, Belongil Beach Italian Food is the brainchild of Sydney restauranteur Maurice Terzini. The mastermind behind Icebergs Dining Room and Bar, CicciaBella, and Re- describes the venue as ‘a simple, everyday beach restaurant’, with the food adding a modern twist to traditional Italian cuisine.
We’ll have to wait to see whether the restaurant will also revamp the menu while it takes a winter hiatus for renovations. But with tempting dishes like grilled scampi and yellowfin tuna tartare on the original menu, we’re sure it’ll be worth the wait.
Find it: 33-35 Childe St, Byron Bay
Share your favourite Italian restaurants in Byron Bay
So that’s our roundup of the best Italian restaurants in Byron Bay! All of our guides are based on a combination of local knowledge and impartial feedback, so if you’ve eaten somewhere that should be on this list but isn’t, send us a message here or on social media, and we’ll check it out!