Bakeries in Genoa: Where to Buy Focaccia and Pastries

What a Genoese bakery sells

A traditional Genoese bakery sells focaccia genovese, the flatbread marked by finger-sized dimples on its surface, known in the local dialect as ombrisalli. The dough is stretched thin, dimpled by hand, then finished with olive oil and coarse salt. In the morning it is eaten plain, often dunked in milk or cappuccino, and later in the day it becomes a snack or the base for a filled sandwich.

Beyond the plain slab, many bakeries top focaccia with olives, tomato, onion, mozzarella or prosciutto. Sweet work sits mostly with the pasticcerie, though plenty of forni keep a case of biscuits and simple cakes near the till. Understanding that divide — savoury counter first, sugar second — is the key to shopping well here.

Focaccia genovese: how to buy and eat it

Ask for focaccia by weight or by the piece, and expect it to be handed over folded in paper, still glistening. Eat it warm and on the spot if you can: the crust is at its best minutes out of the oven, and the oil soaks through if it sits. A slice is a quick breakfast or a mid-morning stop, not a sit-down meal.

If you want to compare the city's best versions, the three historic bakeries below are the ones to put on a route through the old town streets between the port and the centro storico.

Antico Forno della Casana in Vico della Casana

Antico Forno della Casana, tucked into Vico della Casana, is the best-known bakery in the city and a long-standing Genoese institution. Its focaccia comes out golden and soft, and alongside the classic plain slab it sells focaccia with Recco-style cheese — the stretchy, thin cheese focaccia associated with nearby Recco — and Ligurian vegetable pies. It is a practical first stop if you want to understand what the local standard tastes like.

Because it is famous and central, expect queues at peak times; go early in the day if you want to eat your slice without competing for counter space.

Panificio e Grissineria Claretta on Via della Posta Vecchia

Panificio e Grissineria Claretta on Via della Posta Vecchia makes focaccia genovese to the traditional recipe, with one detail that changes the result: the salt goes on the surface rather than into the dough. That gives a crisper, more savoury crust than the softer versions elsewhere. It is a small, historic shop, so the focaccia is best bought and eaten straight away rather than carried around all afternoon.

Antico Forno Patrone Zena on Via di Ravecca

Antico Forno Patrone Zena, on Via di Ravecca, bakes soft, tasty focaccia and sells it with various toppings. It also makes filled focaccia sandwiches using local products, which makes it a good lunch stop when you want something portable to eat while walking. Ravecca sits in the old town, so it slots easily into a morning wandering the caruggi, the narrow lanes of the historic centre.

If you want a sit-down meal afterwards rather than another slice, the wider choice of trattorias and osterie is covered in our guide to the best restaurants in Genoa, which is useful for planning an evening after a day of bakery-hopping.

Klainguti: the historic bar pasticceria in Piazza Soziglia

Klainguti, in Piazza Soziglia, is a historic bar pasticceria founded in 1828 and one of the most iconic addresses in the centro storico. After a period closed, it was reported to have reopened in June the previous year. It is the kind of place where a coffee at the bar and a pastry from the case belong together, so treat it as a pause rather than a quick purchase.

A bar pasticceria in Genoa usually works in two parts: you order and pay at the till for coffee taken standing at the bar, and the pastry case is chosen at the counter. Drink your coffee standing with the locals rather than at a table, and you pay the bar price rather than the table service price.

Pasticceria Quaglia in Sampierdarena and Pasticceria Svizzera in Albaro

Pasticceria Quaglia in Sampierdarena recently marked 70 years in business, an anniversary worth knowing about if you want a pastry shop with real neighbourhood history. After months of protests and petitions, the shop also regained its outdoor seating (dehors). It is the sort of place where the regulars are known by name and the case is filled with classic Genoese sweets rather than trend-driven creations.

Pasticceria Svizzera in Albaro, open since 1910 in the building that once hosted the poet Lord Byron, closed in the spring and was then taken over by the historic Pasticceria Poldo of Pontedecimo, with a reopening reported for late July and an official inauguration in September. If you are heading to Albaro specifically for it, confirm its current status before making the trip.

Seasonal pastries: colomba at Easter, panettone at Christmas

Genoese bakeries and pasticcerie sell colomba, the dove-shaped Easter cake, in the run-up to Pasqua, and panettone at Christmas. These are seasonal bakes, not year-round stock, so do not expect to find them in July. Both come in classic versions with candied fruit and raisins, and in more creative fillings such as chocolate or pistachio cream.

One local pastry worth knowing by name is Pan di Spagna, the plain sponge cake that takes its name from Genoa and appears in desserts across the city. It is the base for many of the layered cakes and tiramisù-style sweets you will see in the case, so order a slice if you want something lighter than a cream-filled pastry.

How to order and pay, and where the counters are

At a forno or panificio, you point at what you want, say how much, and pay at the till; at a pasticceria with a bar, coffee is ordered and paid for at the till first if you are taking it standing. Focaccia is usually sold by weight, so ask for a piece roughly the size you want rather than a fixed portion. Cash is still useful in smaller neighbourhood shops, though cards are widely accepted.

Focaccia is at its best near the old port and the old town, where the bakeries turn over stock fast, but the quieter neighbourhood shops in Sampierdarena and Albaro give you a calmer counter and a better look at how locals buy. If you are building a food day around the city, pair a bakery stop with a plate of pasta or a plate of pesto later on.

Which bakery should you go to first?

Start at Antico Forno della Casana for the classic focaccia and a taste of what the city does best, then walk to Claretta on Via della Posta Vecchia if you want the crisper, salt-on-top version. Save Klainguti for a coffee and pastry pause in the centro storico, and head to Sampierdarena or Albaro if you would rather buy where the neighbourhood shops, not the day-trippers, set the pace.

If you are staying for more than a day, pair the bakeries with a proper meal: our guide to the best pizza in Genoa, our Best Restaurants in Genoa and our Pesto in Genoa guide cover the other things worth eating here.