Are you going to eat at that place with the life-changing zucchini pasta?” a friend joked after I spoke of plans to visit the Amalfi Coast. Of course, she was referencing the Campania episode of Searching for Tucci where the actor visits a Positano restaurant to see how spaghetti alla Nerano is made.

While I laughed and conceded that I wasn’t going there, I had planned a stay in Salerno—as tourists often do—as a base for exploring the Amalfi Coast and Pompeii due to its proximity to both. However, I soon discovered that I preferred the relative calm of this small city to the cramped bus rides and touristy villages further west, as well as the accessibility to excellent food and enjoyment of it in a mellow atmosphere.