From “What shall we cook?” to “Where shall we eat?”: launch of GialloZafferano Ristoranti

● A new smart guide is making its debut, bringing together reviews from 15 food sources into a single index
● Restaurants from three different Italian regions have made it to the national podium: Osteria Francescana (in Emilia-Romagna, in Modena), Uliassi (in Marche, in Senigallia) and Piazza Duomo (in Piedmont, in Alba)

For years, it hashelped millions of Italians find a solution to the daily dilemma: “What shall we cook tonight?” Now GialloZafferano, Italy’s leading food media brand, is taking it a step further and also answering the question: “Where shall we go to eat?”

This development has led to GialloZafferano Ristoranti, a digital platform (available on its dedicated website and via an app) designed to map, compare and consolidate reviews of Italian restaurants.

It is not just a guide, but a reference tool that brings together reviews from 15 industry sources, analysing them using over a hundred criteria.

The aim? To provide a transparent, objective and comparable assessment to find the right restaurant in your preferred area and at your desired price.

“GialloZafferano has always helped people make better choices in the kitchen. With GialloZafferano Ristoranti, we are extending this mission to the world of dining out. We have selected 15 sources written in different languages and compiled them into a single, transparent and accessible index. Not just another restaurant guide, but a useful tool to help you get your bearings. This is the sort of innovation we want to bring to people,” commented Andrea Santagata, CEO of Mondadori Digital.

GZ Score: a composite index that measures quality

GialloZafferano Ristoranti creates a unified system for analysing some of the most authoritative Italian and international sources in the culinary field, ranging from major historical guides to leading global rankings, as well as user-review portals.

The new GialloZafferano platformis based on a proprietary algorithm that analyses public reviews of around 10,000 restaurants, highlighting the top 5,000restaurants in Italy based on the quality of the reviews they have received.

Since each guide uses different rating systems –such as stars, forks, scores or rankings – the GialloZafferano algorithm converts all ratings into a common metric through three main steps:

  • mapping and normalizing the ratings;
  • assigning an authority coefficient to the various sources;
  • calculating a final score that combines the quantity and quality of the ratings received.

The GZ Score is expressed on a scale from 6 to 10 with one decimal place and each position in the ranking is unique. 10 is the highest score displayed on the app and the website: where it appears, the ranking of restaurants is determined by an even more detailed underlying score.

The Top 10 and the map of widespread excellence

The GialloZafferano Ristoranti Top 10 showcases the best of Italian cuisine:

  1. Osteria Francescana (Modena)
  2. Uliassi (Senigallia, AN)
  3. Piazza Duomo (Alba, CN)
  4. Reale (Castel di Sangro, AQ)
  5. Le Calandre (Rubano, PD)
  6. Villa Crespi (Orta San Giulio, NO)
  7. La Pergola at the Hotel Rome Cavalieri (Rome)
  8. Enoteca Pinchiorri (Florence)
  9. Da Vittorio (Brusaporto, BG)
  10. 12 Apostoli (Verona)

At the top of the national rankings for GialloZafferano Restaurants is the Osteria Francescana (Modena), followed on the podium by Uliassi (Senigallia) and Piazza Duomo (Alba).

Geographically, the distribution of the top 100 across regions is led by Lombardy (19%), followed by Lazio (12%) and Piedmont (10%), then Tuscany, Campania and Veneto, all at 9%.

The 100 best Italian restaurants are spread across over 70 cities. While Rome and Milan lead the Top 100 list with 10 restaurants each, the most striking statistic is that 80% of Italy’s culinary excellence is found outside the two main cities.

Badges: value for money and”featured” venues

The platform introduces two special awards to guide customers:

  • GZ Smile (Best value for money): the top spot goes to Trippa (Milan). The Top 10 Smile spans the whole of Italy: Consorzio (Turin), Trattoria da Amerigo 1934 (Savigno, BO), La Brinca (Ne, GE), Lo Stuzzichino (Sant’Agata sui Due Golfi, NA), Al Cambio (Bologna), Antichi Sapori (Montegrosso, BAT), Ristorante Cacciatori (Cartosio, AL), SantoPalato (Rome) and Sora Maria e Arcangelo (Olevano Romano, RM). The badge highlights the strength of the province and its smaller towns.
  • Featured (current trends): dedicated to the brands attracting the most attention from critics and the public. The leading names include: Madonnina del Pescatore (Marzocca, AN), Duomo (Ragusa), Il Pagliaccio (Rome), Seta by Antonio Guida (Milan), D’O (Cornaredo, MI), Torre del Saracino (Vico Equense, NA), Agli Amici dal 1887 (Godia, UD), Glam Enrico Bartolini (Venice), L’Argine a Vencò (Dolegna del Collio, GO) and DaGorini (San Piero in Bagno, FC).

 

GialloZafferano is Italy’s leading food media brand. Online, one in two Italians cooks using GialloZafferano, which reaches over 21 million people every month (Comscore Social Incremental Reach, March 2026). With a fanbase of 72 million followers, it tops the global rankings for food brands on social media (source: internal analysis of Shareablee–Comscore data and social insights). Always on hand with easy recipes that anyone can make, it is available at any time of day across all channels: from the internet to social media, the app, smart devices, the magazine, books, and even local events.