David Howard, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Eat and drink · Chipping Norton
Alberto's, Chipping Norton
A small Italian restaurant and pantry on High Street, Chipping Norton, run by Claire and Val, with handmade pasta, sourdough pizza and charcuterie boards. Walk in at lunch; book for the evening.
A husband-and-wife Italian on the High Street, with a short menu of handmade pasta and sourdough pizza. A good dinner before the theatre, if you book. It is small: no pushchairs, no high chairs, and it cannot cater for coeliacs.
- Good: Handmade pasta, sourdough pizza, and charcuterie boards
- Good: Walk in at lunch, no booking needed
- Good: Pantry sells gourmet products and gifts, and makes up picnics and hampers
- Worth knowing: Cannot cater for coeliacs or guarantee anything gluten-free
- Worth knowing: No room for pushchairs and no high chairs
- Worth knowing: Closed Wednesdays and Sundays; Mondays and Tuesdays are evenings only
About
Alberto's is an Italian restaurant and pantry at 21a High Street in Chipping Norton, run by the husband-and-wife team Claire and Val. Claire has managed Italian delis and restaurants around the UK. Val was born in Rome and has worked in Michelin-starred kitchens and in Italian restaurants.
The menu is short and traditional: handmade pasta, sourdough pizza, small plates and charcuterie boards, with four or five seasonal dishes that use Cotswolds produce. The sample menu of 2026 lists pizzas from £15 and pasta from £18, with a charcuterie board at £17 a head for two or more.
At lunch you can walk in. For the evening, book by email, online or by phone. The Chipping Norton Theatre is in the same town, which makes this an obvious stop before a show, though the restaurant does not advertise pre-theatre sittings.
The pantry sells gourmet products and gifts all year, and makes up picnics and hampers to order. There is a private dining room for birthdays and small events, and food to collect for home or office.
Two limits to know before you book. The kitchen is small, so it cannot cater for coeliac diets or guarantee that a dish is gluten-free. The room is small too, so it cannot take pushchairs or offer high chairs.
Opening hours and season
Closed Wednesday and Sunday. Open Monday and Tuesday evenings, and lunch and evening Thursday to Saturday. The site gives two sets of evening times, so ring to confirm.
The details
- Food
- Italian · Pizza
- Serving
- Lunch · Dinner
- Booking a table
- Booking recommended
- Features
- Private dining · Shop
Location
Places to stay nearby
-
The Fox, Chipping Norton
Pubs · Chipping Norton
A Hook Norton Brewery inn on the Market Place in Chipping Norton, in a Grade II listed building of the early 17th century, with Hooky on the bar, ten en suite bedrooms, breakfast to dinner and a car park behind.
Verified Nov 2026
-
Cotswolds Hotel and Spa, Chipping Norton
Hotel
A large golf and spa hotel at Southcombe, on the edge of Chipping Norton, with 114 rooms and suites, an 18-hole parkland course, padel, spa treatments and Greys Restaurant, plus free parking.
Verified Nov 2026
-
Heythrop Park
Hotel
A Warner adults-only hotel in a Grade II* listed house of the early 1700s, on 440 acres near Enstone, selling dinner, bed and breakfast breaks with nightly entertainment, a spa, a pool and an 18-hole golf course.
Verified Nov 2026
Nearby walks, places and things to do
- Jaffé and Neale Bookshop and Café, Chipping Norton 0.0 km away
- The Chequers, Chipping Norton 0.1 km away
- The Blue Boar, Chipping Norton 0.1 km away
- Chipping Norton Theatre 0.1 km away
Sights nearby
-
Rollright Stones
Sight · Hill fort or barrow
Three prehistoric monuments on the Oxfordshire and Warwickshire border, built over more than 2,000 years: the Whispering Knights, the King's Men circle and the King Stone, with a legend of a king and a witch to go with them. Open daily; adults £2.