3 quick ones for you - Checchino dal 1887 in Rome, Il Latini in Florence, and Drogheria della Rosa in Bologna. All are authentic, old school, with great wine lists to boot.....just to start the discussion!

we were lucky enough to have lunch at Osteria Veglio followed by dinner at Borgo Antico this weekend.......to me an ideal combination of classic "old school" Italian and a more cutting edge version in the evening. The service could not have been more gracious at both places, the wine lists staggering, and the food as flavorful and beautifully presented as one could hope for....kudos to both restaurants, I HIGHLY recommend both.

I second that recommendation , Emanuele (the owner) basically took charge of our lunch and dinner...served us fabulous pastas , meats, seafood, and wine to match. He told us he likes to make his clients fell they are dining in his home, and it does feel that way....and both meals were concluded with a single , unitemized bill for 100 euro , a steal for what we had.

re inventive food - raw mackerel over a layer of goat cheese, julienne of green apple, and olive ; millefoglie of foie gras layered with tongue ; roast filet mignon with a hot chili rub and mild honey drizzle....that to me is pretty creative for an Italian resto in the middle of Piemonte...re Centro , the ambiance, service, etc were delightful, but the actual taste of the food didnt match my expectations...i very much wanted to love it but it just didnt measure up t

Ristorante Bovio in La Morra has amazing food and a terrace view for miles...fantastic.

-----
Bovio
Via Alba, 17, La Morra (Cuneo), Piedmont 12064, IT

in the town of Barolo try La Cantinetta , excellent little trattoria, very reasonable and warm , friendly Italian service.....buon appetito!

just back from long weekend in Piemonte....I wanted to love Il Centro, our greeting was very gracious, and Enrico the host/owner gave us a beautiful coffee table style book about his restaurant upomn our departure. Sadly the food fell flat, not bad but somewhat uninspiring considering the atmospheric location and ambience....I will give it another chance and hope to be proven wrong. However lunch at Il Cascinalenuova (http://www.ilcascinalenuovo.com/) was spectacular, 6 or 7 courses , 80 euro, every dish inventive and bursting with flavor. The entrance is right off ss231 which is a small highway and NOT atmospheric, nor is the entrance to a 1970's style hotel...however we sat outside in a covered patio and had an amazing time. The other treat was dinner at Ristorante Bovio (http://www.ristorantebovio.it/ing/dov...) , insane views from the terrace in La Morra, one of the prime Barolo sites, of which Bovio is a producer....again fabulous food, excellent service, very highly recommended.

-----
Bovio
Via Alba, 17, La Morra (Cuneo), Piedmont 12064, IT

Il Centro
Via Umberto I,8, Priocca, Piemonte 12040, IT

Taormina is like a Tuscan hilltown but perched on a cliff overlooking the sea, its a fabulous spot, plenty of great small restos (la capinera *michelin , osteria nero d'avola, la tavernetta, maffei's), ideal time tho is april or september....but try and check it out if possible

al ceppo is very nice , reminded of an upper east side manhattan restaurant , checchino has an amazing wine list but specialty is offal (awful?) so bit tricky there....la rosetta very expensive, havent been but herd mixed reviews.

Al Ceppo is excellent , reminds me of an Upper East side NY Italian (better of course) , for high end food tho my favorite is Agata e Romeo , arguably top 5 in rome in my view