What to eat in Bari: the dishes and street food to try
Translated from the Italian original. Facts and figures are checked on the original.
Short answer
In Bari you mostly eat in the street: focaccia barese with cherry tomatoes, fried panzerotti, sgagliozze (fried polenta) and popizze (fried dough balls) in Bari Vecchia. At the table: orecchiette with turnip tops, rice, potatoes and mussels, braciole in ragù and crudo di mare (raw seafood). Buy focaccia at the bakery in the morning or mid-afternoon, fresh from the oven.
When to go
Focaccia mid-morning or mid-afternoon, when it comes out of the oven. Raw seafood in the morning, at the harbour.
When to avoid
Raw seafood from makeshift stalls: choose places with a high turnover and fish that is stored properly.
In Bari you come across food just by walking: bakeries with focaccia in the window, women frying sgagliozze in Bari Vecchia, fishermen selling sea urchins and octopus at the harbour. Here is what to order.
Street food
- Focaccia barese — thick, soft and just oily enough, with cherry tomatoes and olives. Get it at the bakery, still warm.
- Panzerotti — fried half-moons of dough, filled with tomato and mozzarella.
- Sgagliozze — slices of fried polenta, in Bari Vecchia.
- Popizze — balls of fried leavened dough, to eat piping hot.
At the table
- Orecchiette with turnip tops — the signature dish, in turnip-top season, from autumn to spring.
- Rice, potatoes and mussels — the Bari tiella, baked in the oven.
- Spaghetti all’assassina — cooked in the pan, spicy, crunchy.
- Braciole in ragù — meat rolls slow-cooked in tomato sauce, the Sunday lunch.
- Crudo di mare — sea urchins, mussels, octopus, oysters. Only order it in places you trust.
Beyond Bari
The cooking changes as soon as you leave the city. In Cisternino there are the bombette of the fornelli pronti, in Martina Franca capocollo, in Altamura its DOP bread.
FAQ
What is focaccia barese?
A thick, soft focaccia with plenty of olive oil, crushed cherry tomatoes, olives and oregano. It is eaten at any time of day, even for breakfast.
What are sgagliozze?
Slices of fried polenta, typical of Bari Vecchia, sold hot by the women in the lanes of the old town.
What is spaghetti all'assassina?
Spaghetti cooked directly in the pan with spicy tomato sauce until it turns crunchy and slightly charred. It is a dish born in Bari.
Sources
Facts checked on 28 October 2026. How I check facts.
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