We had the misfortune of doing our hike up to the top of Lagazuoi on a day when there was a thick amount of cloud cover going up - only to have it clear up substantially by the time we had made it through the tunnels and were halfway back down. I can only fathom that the views from the top are phenomenal (and being in the clouds, with only a faint view of your surroundings is magical in its own way). Rifugio Lagazuoi is your reward at the top after a very grueling hike up - or if you take the easy way and ride the gondola up. We popped in to grab a bite, partially to escape the cool weather but also to refuel after making our ascent. With a decent amount of seating outdoors, as well as indoors, you can have your pick. In our case, most people were inside given the weather, but we got lucky and found a corner booth to squish ourselves into. Like most rifugios on the hiking trails in the Dolomites, the service wasn't that attentive, but once you got your order in, the food showed up in relatively short order. The harder part was getting the check to go, as once you have everything in hand, the attention turns elsewhere quickly. There's a decent drinks menu here, although I was very heartened to see a few craft beers from Italy. I tried the American-style pale ale, which was less hoppy but sturdier and with a nice copper tone to it - very drinkable and refreshing.
The food, though, is absolutely amazing. It was probably the best of the rifugios that we visited, so it set the bar high for any other bites we had along the way. I went with the spaghetti al ragu, and it was phenomenal - noodles cooked perfectly al dente, with a hearty beef ragu sauce that was delicious but not too saucy. My wife's tagliatelle with mushrooms was excellent as well, with the same excellent preparation for the pasta, but with a fairly light cream sauce that let the pungent earthiness of the mushrooms really shine. We also shared a plate of speck as an appetizer, which was delicious - it was a very generous portion served all sliced up.
While the hiking around this part of the Dolomites is fantastic, one of the treats of doing this - one of the harder, steeper paths to ascend - is not only the views from the top but the food as well. I can't speak to the hospitality if you are staying here, but if you want a bite, this is definitely one of the Rifugios that you should have a meal at for sure. read more