10 Best Restaurants To Try In Tirana Albania (2024)

Tirana is a little-known European capital that deserves more attention from cultural travelers. Albania‘s capital city has restaurants ranging from top gourmet establishments to cozy cafes. Read our list of the 10 best restaurants in town.

Padam, part of the Padam Boutique Hotel & Restaurant, is the most elegant restaurant in Tirana. It is located inside an old villa from the 1930s, near the Pyramid, and within 5 minutes from the Blloku district, and offers a high-class culinary experience. The chef Fundim Gjepali, who is also the chef of one of the most famous restaurants in Rome, Antico Arco, creates culinary masterpieces with the freshest seasonal ingredients. The menu has a great variety of wines, from all over the world. We suggest you to come here early to sip a pre-dinner co*cktail on the classy veranda and then dine.

In front of Tirana’s artificial lake, one of the most beautiful spots in the town, lives Mullixhiu, the coolest restaurant of the Albanian capital city. Chef Bledar Kola, who worked at the world-famous Noma in Copenhagen, invites customers to taste traditional Albanian tastes reinvented in a sophisticated and modern way: the result is an excellent mix of old and new. The ingredients are taken directly from Mrizi I Zanave, a gorgeous farmhouse-cum-restaurant located near the town of Lezhe, in the north of the country. Also the wine list is outstanding, with wines from Albania’s most famous wineries, including Kantina Kallmeti.

Worldwide success Masterchef debuted on Albanian TV in recent years. The two winners of the show’s first edition capitalised on the celebrity boost by establishing an Italian restaurant in Tirana. At Melograno (Italian for ‘pomegranate’), the two create incredibly exquisite dishes, with fish courses definitely stealing the show of the restaurant’s impeccable and creative cuisine. The food is presented spotlessly and with outstanding imagination – every dish is picture perfect, and a joy for the eyes as much as the palate. The two-tier, elegeant restaurant envelopes guests in a soothing ambience that tops off an unforgettable dining experience.

A must-try for anyone visiting Tirana, Era serves up scrumptious, traditional Albanian fare alongside many Italian classics, including pizzas. Located in a spellbinding, two-floor villa nearby the Qemal Stafa stadium, the restaurant first impresses with the beauty of its interiors. The rustic setting created by stone walls and wooden finishings is nicely softened with delicate accents like pastel-coloured pillows, fresh flowers and dainty curtains. Plenty of outdoor seating is available on the charming street level patio and on the summer terrace. If you’re visiting the historic Blloku neighbourhood, there’s another Era branch there where you can try more of the restaurant’s delectable cuisine.

If you want to taste authentic Albanian cuisine, there is only one place to go – Oda. This traditional restaurant, located near the beautiful Pazari I Ri market, has recently been renovated and is one of the last places in town where you can eat typical Albanian delicacies, such as fërgesë, patëllxhanë te mbushur, kukurec and more. The space is small and usually frequented by locals who come here to enjoy traditional flavours.

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Part of Sky Hotel, a cutting-edge establishment in the city’s centre, Sky Club is the restaurant to go to enjoy breathtaking views. Sky Club is found on the hotel’s highest floor – offering panoramas of the urban landscape, as well as the mountains that serve as the city’s backdrop. Take a seat, and if you have the impression that the room just started spinning, you’d be right: the venue is based on a rotating platform that makes a complete turn in an hour time, letting you enjoy a 360° view of Tirana while eating the delicious delicacies drawn from both local and international cuisines.

Piano Bar Piazza is not only one of the best restaurants in Tirana, but is also one of the first restaurants opened in the capital of Albania. Its central location, just a few steps from the National History Museum, makes it hard to miss and a stop here is a great choice for those who enjoy fish dishes. Moreover, Piazza Piano Bar offers a classy touch at reasonable prices, completing its menu with a list of the best local wines.

For an excellent Japanese meal, go straight to Opium Sushi Bar. A cool restaurant that opened in 2017, this is the one and only real sushi bar in Tirana. If you like sushi, sashimi, wakame, and so on, you will not be disappointed. There are also several great desserts which are very well executed. The location is beautiful with gorgeous design and a modern Asian touch.

If you are a fan of Italian cuisine, the best place to go is PaneVino, the elegant restaurant located near the gorgeous Plaza Hotel, in the middle of Tirana. PaneVino is a classy restaurant which offers to customers a big choice of Italian dishes: we suggest you to order the homemade pasta of the day and then a pistachio gelato, which may be the best ice cream in town.

Located near the Albanian Parliament in what is considered one of the trendiest areas of Tirana, Il Gusto is ready to pamper you with caring service and sumptuous Italian specialities, complemented by a fine selection of Mediterranean wines. Il Gusto takes particular pride in the cutting-edge level of technology found in the restaurant’s kitchen: between digital ovens, coal grills and fridge rooms, the chefs have expert machines in order to deliver perfectly prepared dishes, full of flavour. Stylish but casual, Il Gusto is a fitting choice for those looking for a refined yet informal meal.

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