Situated in one of Carmel’s many hidden courtyards, Il Tegamino, a tiny Italian restaurant, woos diners with al fresco dining and spot-on pasta dishes. In addition to a killer Bucatini alla Carbonara, Il Tegamino dishes up romance worthy of the tear-jerking finale of your favorite rom-com. Snuggle up with your SO under throw blankets and fork into a white wine-sauce spaghetti bursting with prawns, clams, and mussels.

For Italian comfort food, try Il Tegamino (the ravioli di campagna with eggplant, $38, is delicious). And if you can get a reservation, Akaoni (no website, 831-620-1516) will not disappoint. The restaurant is known for its master chef’s sushi selection ($60 and up) but locals know to check the specials board that often includes local halibut ($15) and Monterey squid ($16).

Carmel is full of downright charming restaurants that make us feel like we’re in a European village, but Il Tegamino takes the crown. You’ll find this Southern Italian spot in the Court of the Golden Bough—and yes, it’s as cute as it sounds. Just follow the cobblestones past the Cottage of Sweets along Ocean Avenue to find your prize.

Tucked away in one of the town’s signature hidden courtyards, Court of the Golden Bough, Il Tegamino is a family-run Italian restaurant that serves comforting Italian cuisine. The signature zucchine alla scapece is a must-order appetizer, composed of olive oil and herb-marinated zucchini served with a warm artisan bread basket for dipping. Though Il Tegamino is exclusively open for dinner on weekdays, the restaurant recently launched a weekend aperitivo hour where guests can sit down in the courtyard for wine and shared bites like pesto and burrata bruschetta and a picture-perfect charcuterie board.

Il Tegamino is tucked into a sun-soaked courtyard just off of Ocean Avenue, serving as the ideal venue to indulge in Italian comfort food classics while en route to the beach, or to refuel after basking in the sea breeze. Diners can choose to enjoy their meal on the brick-lined outdoor patio or they can indulge in Il Tegamino's intimate dining room. As the self-proclaimed "place for pasta lovers," it's no surprise that many of the restaurant's best dishes are pasta-based.

12 Il Tegamino: Six kinds of meatballs are the star of the menu at this Italian restaurant by Giuseppe and Salvatore Panzuto. The brothers grew up in Napoli, but both were well known in the area before opening their own place last year. Many of the rustic, satisfying recipes come from their mother, including thinly sliced zucchini layered with mozzarella, tomato, basil and Parmesan; and paccheri, large pasta tubes, in slow-cooked pork-and-beef-rib tomato sauce.

Some of our favorites include Yeast of Eden, an upscale gastropub with beer brewed in-house; Il Tegamino, which serves Italian comfort food; and Flaherty's Seafood Grill & Oyster Bar, a seafood restaurant that prides itself on sustainability. Other options include Grasing's, a California steakhouse that serves a dog menu on the patio, and Forge in the Forest, which also serves up "Canine Cuisine.

Il Tegamino is recommended for Italian comfort food and pasta in a hidden courtyard along with Flaherty’s Seafood Grill and Cultura Comida y Bebida for Mexican specialities from Oaxaca. Aubergine at the L’Auberge Carmel is a lovely fine dining spot. In 2016 and 2015 they were nominated for a James Beard Foundation award including Best Chef, West and Outstanding Service.

The first thing you should know is that a tegamino is an Italian two-handled frying pan. Il Tegamino’s owner chose the name to honor his mother, who cooked with and collected tegamini in her home in Napoli. And it is Neapolitan cooking and hospitality that imbues this restaurant, which is tucked away in the Court of the Golden Bough—Carmel’s oldest courtyard.

Visit Il Tegamino for an authentic, romantic dining experience with some of the best Italian food in Carmel!. You really feel like you’re in Italy, because the menu is inspired by Chef Giuseppe Panzuto’s hometown of Napoli, Italy. With hearty comfort food and an Italian bistro vibe, this is a cozy restaurant that’s popular with both visitors and locals.

The place named for a traditional Italian pan represents the dream—and utilizes the recipes—of late Mama Rita Panzuto. Her son, hands-on owner-GM Giuseppe honors both with an adorable, historic and subterranean spot with a great patio that multiplies capacity. Highlights include crab meatballs and lasagna a la carnivale.

another great best restaurant carmel ca For homemade pastas and wood-fired Neapolitan pizzas in an intimate trattoria, Il Tegamino charms guests with its cozy charm and authentic Southern Italian fare. Tucked away in a courtyard, their small space fills up fast so reservations are a must.

Classic Italian comfort foods find a forever home at Il Tegamino, a cozy Carmel restaurant that specializes in traditional Tuscan cuisine, marrying the rich flavors and rustic dishes of Tuscany with the California coast.

Il Tegamino is located in the charming Court of the Golden Bough. One of Carmel-by-the-Sea's best hidden gems, the Court of the Golden Bough is tucked behind the Cottage of Sweets. Owned by Giuseppe and…

Italian comfort food in one of Carmel’s best hidden courtyards. View this post on Instagram. A post shared by Il Tegamino (@il_tegamino)

Two is Il Tegamino from Giusseppe and Salvatore Panzuto, set for Court of the Golden Bough starting late this summer.