Best Italian Restaurants in Nelson: Wood Fired Pizza and Handmade Pasta

The best Italian restaurants in Nelson run from Neapolitan pizza and handmade pasta through to family pizza bars that have been feeding the city for generations. Whether you want a long dinner with a glass of local wine or a stone oven pizza to carry home, Italian restaurants in Nelson stretch from the Hardy Street and Trafalgar Street block out to Tahunanui Beach. Bar Rosa and La Farina are a good place to start.

1Bar Rosa

Bar Rosa is a modern Italian restaurant on Hardy Street in central Nelson, built around handmade pasta, Neapolitan pizza, fresh seafood and small plates made for sharing. The menu takes global influences and modern Italian roots and turns them into bold dishes designed to be passed around the table. It suits diners who want a proper sit down evening rather than a quick bite.

Services

• Handmade pasta, including squid ink pappardelle with pork and paua ragu and linguine carbonara
• Neapolitan pizza in a 10.5 inch size, with buffalo mozzarella and San Marzano tomato
• Small plates such as saffron arancini, market fish crudo and seared beef fillet carpaccio
• Larger plates including charcoal fired Angus Pure sirloin and butternut gnocchi
• Marlborough oysters served natural with a sherry vinegar mignonette

Highlights

• House made guanciale in the carbonara, finished with pecorino and black truffle
• Italian dessert list running from limoncello cannoli to caramelised cream panna cotta
• Open for dinner only, Tuesday to Saturday from 4.30pm
• Gift vouchers sold online and valid for 36 months from the date of purchase
• Dietary restrictions accommodated where the kitchen can, if flagged at booking or on arrival

Location & Contact

Name: Bar Rosa
Address: 274 Hardy Street, Nelson 7010
Phone: 03 922 9904
Website: barrosa.co.nz

2La Farina Pizza and Pasta Bar

La Farina Pizza and Pasta Bar is a traditional Italian wood fired pizzeria in the heart of Tahunanui Beach, about ten minutes by car from the Nelson city centre. Where possible everything is made on the premises from locally supplied ingredients, and the kitchen is fully licensed. It is set up equally for dine in, takeaway, pick up and delivery.

Services

• Wood fired traditional and gourmet pizzas on hand stretched thin bases with house made Neapolitan sauce
• Hand crafted pasta made on site
• Home made soups and seafood chowder, prepared gluten free
• Antipasti and salads including arancini, calamari fritti and bruschetta
• Online ordering for dine in, takeaway, pick up and delivery

Highlights

• A genuine Italian wood fired oven burning clean native wood
• Flour that is 100 percent New Zealand grown and milled in the South Island from non-GM wheat
• Fully licensed, with wines from local vineyards and craft beer brewed in Nelson on tap
• Gluten free, vegetarian and vegan choices throughout, including a dairy free vegan mozzarella swap
• Kids birthday bookings and gift vouchers, with ample street parking on Tāhunanui Drive and Beach Road

Location & Contact

Name: La Farina Pizza and Pasta Bar
Address: 8 Tahunanui Drive, State Highway 6, Nelson 7011
Phone: 03 546 4421
Website: lafarina.co.nz

3Stefano’s

Stefano’s is a pizzeria, cafe and bar at the river end of Nelson’s main street, pitched at diners after a wholesome, tasty lunch or dinner with a coffee or a glass of wine. The signature dishes are hand made pizzas baked in a stone oven using quality local and Italian ingredients. A team of four Italian chefs works the kitchen, with pasta dishes added by Mauro, the newest of them.

Services

• Hand made pizzas baked in a stone oven, in small, medium and large sizes
• Homemade pasta such as tagliatelle bolognese, tagliatelle ai gamberi and cappellacci di carne
• Gluten free pizza bases in the small size
• Coffee and bar service alongside lunch and dinner
• Takeaway, delivery and online ordering

Highlights

• A team of four Italian chefs in the kitchen
• Stone oven baking with a mix of local and Italian ingredients
• Low gluten, low dairy and vegetarian dishes marked across the takeaway menu
• Private functions taken by arrangement
• Pizza served seven days a week, at lunch and again in the evening

Location & Contact

Name: Stefano’s
Address: 91 Trafalgar Street, Nelson 7010
Phone: 03 546 7530
Website: stefanos.co.nz

4Salvito’s Pizza Bar

Salvito’s Pizza Bar on Hardy Street serves traditional Italian pizza from a family whose Nelson story began in 1890, when Pasquale Fiatarone sailed from the Port of Naples and settled here among the city’s early Italian community. Four generations on, his great-great-grandsons Salvi and Vito Esposito run the pizza bar, cooking with imported and local ingredients. It suits anyone after a classic pizza, and it caters for gatherings as well.

Services

• Traditional Italian pizza made with imported and local ingredients
• Catering packages for events from 10 to more than 100 guests
• Italian antipasto platters with hand selected cured meats and cheese
• Mediterranean mixed salads
• Pizza cut into snack sized portions and delivered hot to a home or office

Highlights

• Run by Salvi and Vito Esposito, great-great-grandsons of a Neapolitan migrant who reached Nelson in 1890
• Four generations and 130 years of family cooking behind the pizza
• Gluten free and vegan options on request, in a kitchen the owners describe as a high gluten environment
• Catering available seven days by arrangement, priced per person

Location & Contact

Name: Salvito’s Pizza Bar
Address: 193 Hardy Street, Nelson
Phone: 03 922 9869
Website: salvitos.nz

5Pizzeria Bella

Pizzeria Bella is a cosy spot on Bridge Street in the heart of Nelson, with both indoor and outdoor seating. The dough and the sauce are made from scratch every day, and the pizza list runs from traditional Margherita and Quattro Stagioni to gourmet and dessert options. Bookings are taken by phone or through a form on the website.

Services

• Traditional pizzas in 11, 15 and 18 inch sizes on a tomato base with mozzarella
• Gourmet and dessert pizzas
• Vegan pizzas made with vegan cheese
• Cannelloni filled with spinach and ricotta, baked in a creamy tomato sauce
• Focaccia based starters and salads, including a Greek and a capricciosa salad

Highlights

• Dough and sauce made from scratch on site each day
• Gluten free bases in the small size, and vegan cheese available on any pizza
• Indoor and outdoor seating a short walk from the Nelson waterfront
• Online ordering for pickup, phone orders with contactless payment in store, and gift vouchers from $25

Location & Contact

Name: Pizzeria Bella
Address: 56 Bridge Street, Nelson
Phone: 03 546 9723
Website: pizzeriabella.co.nz

Italian Restaurants in Nelson at a Glance

How to Choose the Right Italian Restaurant in Nelson

• Decide what kind of meal you want first. A wine list, handmade pasta and a booked table point one way; a stone oven pizza to take home points another.
• Check how the pizza is cooked. A wood fired oven, a stone oven and a conventional deck oven each give a different base, and the kitchens that use them usually say so.
• Look at whether the pasta is made on site. Restaurants rolling their own tagliatelle, pappardelle or cannelloni will name the shapes on the menu rather than just listing sauces.
• Confirm dietary options before you book. Gluten free bases are often limited to one pizza size, and a kitchen handling flour all day cannot promise a coeliac safe environment.
• Match the location to the occasion. The central city suits a walk from a bar or the cinema, while Tahunanui works better if you want the beach and easy parking.

Frequently Asked Questions About Nelson Italian Restaurants

How much does a meal at an Italian restaurant in Nelson cost?

Published menus around the city start at roughly $13 for a small traditional pizza and reach the mid $40s for a large gourmet one. Pasta mains generally sit between about $23 and $36, and shared starters such as arancini, bruschetta or garlic bread usually land between $12 and $16. Catering packages are quoted per head rather than per dish.

Which parts of Nelson have Italian restaurants?

Most are in the central city, clustered along Hardy Street, Trafalgar Street and Bridge Street, so you can walk between several of them in a few minutes. The main exception is Tahunanui, out by the beach on State Highway 6, which is about ten minutes by car from the city centre and is also on the Nelson to Richmond and Nelson to Airport bus routes. If you are staying near the waterfront or the cathedral, the central city options will be the closest.

Do Nelson Italian restaurants cater for gluten free, vegetarian and vegan diets?

Most do, though the detail varies. Gluten free pizza bases are common but are often offered only in the smaller size and usually carry a surcharge, and vegan cheese is widely available as a swap. Several kitchens also mark low gluten, low dairy and vegetarian dishes on the menu itself. Because pizzerias work with flour all day, none of them can offer a fully separated coeliac environment, so flag a serious allergy when you book.

What is the difference between a wood fired pizza and a stone oven pizza?

A wood fired oven burns hardwood directly in the chamber, running very hot and leaving the char and smoke that Neapolitan style bases are known for. A stone oven is gas or electric but bakes on the same kind of refractory floor, giving a crisp base with less smoke. Both produce a better crust than a standard metal tray, and the choice mostly comes down to whether you want that smoky edge.

Do I need to book a table, or can I walk in?

Booking is the safer option for dinner, especially from Thursday to Saturday, and several Nelson restaurants take reservations online or by phone. Pizzerias that are geared toward takeaway and pick up are easier to walk into, but the smaller dining rooms fill quickly. Public holidays are the main catch, since some kitchens close entirely and others change their hours.

Can I get Italian food delivered or as takeaway in Nelson?

Yes. Most pizzerias in the city offer pick up and many run their own delivery within the Nelson area, with online ordering through their websites. Pasta travels less well than pizza, so some kitchens restrict certain pasta dishes to pick up only. Catering deliveries for offices and events are usually arranged directly with the restaurant rather than ordered online.

How can I check a restaurant’s food safety record?

Every food business in New Zealand operates under a registered food control plan and is verified by a council or a recognised agency. The Ministry for Primary Industries explains how the system works and what the results mean at mpi.govt.nz, and registration and verification for premises in this city are handled by Nelson City Council. Many restaurants display their current grade near the entrance.

What should I look for on an authentic Italian menu?

Named pasta shapes are a good signal, since pappardelle, cappellacci, cannelloni and gnocchi each suit particular sauces and a kitchen making its own will say which it uses. On pizza, look for San Marzano tomato, buffalo mozzarella, guanciale, nduja or mortadella rather than generic toppings. Regional desserts such as panna cotta, cannoli and affogato point the same way, as does a menu that lists antipasti separately from larger plates.