Il Coniglio in Tavola

Il Coniglio in Tavola: the festival that defines Salvitelle

Il Coniglio in Tavola, the direct successor to the historic Sagra del Coniglio, is the most representative food festival of the Municipality of Salvitelle, a tiny village in the Alto Tanagro area of the province of Salerno, in Campania. Born in 1994, the festival has spanned over thirty years of local history. In 2026, it reaches its thirty-first edition, remaining the summer highlight that brings the entire community together, including emigrants who return to the village specifically for these late August days.

A dish that embodies family memory

Here, rabbit is no ordinary ingredient; it is the festive centerpiece of Salvitelle cuisine. The traditional recipe features stuffed rabbit, filled with goat cheese and pecorino, eggs, liver, and stale bread, then slow-cooked in tomato sauce. Local mothers used to prepare it for important occasions, and it was from this domestic tradition that the idea for the festival was born, bringing a dish once reserved for home kitchens out into the public square. For years, the event was recognized as the only festival dedicated to rabbit in both Campania and Basilicata.

The festival's signature dishes

• Fusilli with rabbit sauce — the iconic first course, seasoned with the rich sauce resulting from the slow cooking of the meat;
• Stuffed rabbit — filled with goat cheese, pecorino, eggs, liver, and bread, following the traditional village recipe;
• Hunter-style rabbit (cacciatora) — prepared with white wine, extra virgin olive oil, carrots, and rosemary;
• Local red wine to accompany the meal, as tradition dictates for evenings in the square.

A festival crossing the Tanagro

In recent years, the festival has adopted an itinerant format along the lower Tanagro: the Salvitelle evenings are now complemented by a second leg in Palomonte, allowing two neighboring communities to share the same gastronomic heritage. In 2026, the first two evenings will be held in Piazza San Sebastiano in Salvitelle on August 22nd and 23rd, while the event moves to Palomonte at Oro Italia on August 28th and 29th.

Organizers

The event is organized by the Pro Loco «V. Briganti» of Salvitelle, which has managed the village's summer calendar independently in recent years without public funding, relying on the work of local volunteers and youth. The evenings take place during the celebrations for Saint Sebastian, the patron saint after whom the square hosting the stands is named.

Salvitelle and the Alto Tanagro

Salvitelle is one of the smallest municipalities in the province of Salerno, with a few hundred inhabitants overlooking the Tanagro valley, within the Tanagro–Alto e Medio Sele Mountain Community, at the gateway to the Vallo di Diano. It is a rural area that has maintained a close connection to its farming history, characterized by home livestock, vegetable gardens, wood-fired bread, and preserves. Attending the festival also means walking through the historic center, lingering in the alleys, and understanding why, in these inland areas of Campania, food remains a collective narrative rather than a mere tourist offering.

Why it's worth the trip

If you are looking for a flashy festival with big-name performers, you won't find it here. Il Coniglio in Tavola is an authentic village feast where the value lies in the quality of the cooking, the conviviality, and honest pricing. It is the perfect opportunity to combine the evening with a weekend of discovery between the Alburni mountains, the Vallo di Diano, and the inland Cilento, with the certainty of tasting a dish that is not easily found elsewhere in Campania.