Portoferraio's restaurants lean heavily on seafood — this is an island, after all. The local specialty is cacciucco, a rich fish soup with tomatoes and stale bread that varies from kitchen to kitchen. You will also find squid cooked "alla diavola" (with chilli), rice blackened with squid ink, and stockfish prepared in the Riese style. Vegetable dishes hold their own too: gurguglione, a summer stew of courgettes, peppers, aubergine, and tomatoes, is the island's answer to ratatouille.
For dessert, look for schiaccia briaca — a dense, dark cake made with pine nuts, sultanas, and Aleatico wine. The local wines carry the Elba DOC label: a crisp white Procanico and a light red Sangioveto for the table, and the sweet Aleatico and Moscato to finish.
The harbour front has the most options but also the highest tourist markup. For better value, try the lanes behind Piazza della Repubblica or ask at your accommodation — the locals eat well and they know where.