Italian

Bacci (Fairmont Southampton [1], 101 South Shore Rd., tel. 441/238-8000 or 441/239-6966, www.fairmont.com/southampton [2], dinner only 6–10 p.m. daily) is the latest incarnation of the now-defunct Rib Room of decades past. Located next to the hotel’s golf course, a good trek from the main entrance (take the hotel trolley or drive past the hotel to the golf club), the restaurant was renamed (Italian for “kiss”) and reopened as a reasonably priced, family-friendly Italian restaurant in 2004. The menu features favorites such as fried calamari ($13) and pumpkin soup ($9) as appetizers, pastas and risottos ($22–32), make-your-own pizzas, and classic main courses such as osso buco ($42), veal scallopini, or baked red snapper (both $38). One of its most popular offerings is the antipasti bar, serving sun-dried tomatoes, sardines, grilled vegetables, bocconcini cheese, prosciutto, anchovies, and cured meats ($20).

At Tio Pepe (117 South Shore Rd., tel. 441/238-1897 or 441/238-0572, fax 441/238-4966, maresma [at] northrock [dot] bm, lunch noon–5 p.m., dinner from 5 p.m. daily), the stone lions, red-and-white awnings, and bright tablecloths scream “Mediterranean” and give the restaurant the feel of a Spanish or Italian roadside pizzeria or seaside pasta place. The menu is packed with Italian specials, but dinner items, in particular, are pricey for the venue ($29.50 for grilled wahoo, $23.50 for chicken breast parmigiana)—but that’s nothing new in Bermuda. Inside, where Chianti bottles swing from the ceiling and waiters breeze around with trays of sangria and swizzles, smoking has been banned (one of the first island restaurants to lay down the law). Cozy, table-packed rooms are ideal for families or groups. Outside, there is seating under umbrellas on roadside terraces. Located directly opposite the entrance to Horseshoe Bay [3], Tio Pepe is a favorite with beachgoers and Bermudian regulars.