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| Reviews and photos of Italy restaurants posted by real travelers and locals. The best tips for Italy dining. Map |
 | Italy Restaurants | Tips 1 - 10 of 346 |  |
What should you order when you are in an Italian restaurant? Depends on your appetite and your taste buds, of course. First, perhaps you would like to know the meaning of terms:
Stuzzichino/i: Pre-appetizer, always gratis
Antipasto/i: Literally means “before the meal” -- an appetizer course
Primo/i: First course -- pasta, soup, or risotto
Secondo/i: Main course -- meat, fish, or eggs
Contorno/i: Side dish -- vegetables or salads
Formaggio/i: Cheese plate
Dolce/i: Dessert -- fruit, cake, caffè affogato (hot coffee poured over ice cream) or cantucci (biscotti with vin santo)
Caffè: Always by itself and at the end of the meal
That’s the normal sequence of courses, but you are not required to order them all. The best thing is to do it the Italian way: order one course at a time. If you don’t know how much you can eat until you finish a course, why should you give out a full order in advance?
The next best thing is to order only what you wish to eat and skip the rest. It’s perfectly fine to have just an antipasto and a primo, or a primo and a contorno, or a contorno served as antipasto then a secondo, or a contorno served as a primo followed by a secondo, etc. Do whatever your heart desires and your stomach can handle. Leave a Comment Theme: Italian
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There shouldn’t be any hidden charges in a restaurant bill in Italy. Both coperto (cover) and service charge are not to be added afterward.
By law, service charge is always included. I haven't seen many restaurants violating that rule.
In small towns, sometimes the coperto is added under the name of pane (bread). This is a very small charge, however. At €1 per person, it isn’t a big deal to make a fuss over, especially when the value of the meal is high.
Tipping is also not required. Full-time wait staff get decent salary and full benefits, just like in any other professions; they don’t depend on tips to make a living as do their counterparts in the US. If you are pleased with the service and the food, leave 5 - 10%, but hand it to the waiter instead of adding it to the bill. Most restaurants use the tips received as discreet income toward the maintenance of the restaurant, instead of passing it down to the wait staff.
Americans are always very good tippers. Leaving 15% or 20% behind (or even more for an exceptional meal) is our normal practice, and we carry that practice with us when we travel. In Italy, this practice was at first received with full appreciation, but it has become an expectation in touristy cities. This has made things difficult for the locals when they frequent the same restaurants. This is my personal experience on the bad effect of generous tipping:
Only twice have I eaten at what I call "tourist trap restaurants" in Rome. In one of those encounters, a waiter gave me back the change all in coins when he could easily have given me at least two notes. He stood at the table, waiting impatiently. I looked at him. “Allora?” I asked. He said tips are not included. I scooped up the whole pile of coins, put them in my purse, and stood up so I would be at the same eye level with him. “I am not a tourist and I wasn't born yesterday”. Those were my last words. He stared at me. I turned and left.
The moral of the story: Your automatic tipping habits can be hazardous to others. :-) Leave a Comment Theme: Italian
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In small towns and simple trattorie, you will find that the menu sometimes doesn't exist. These are the two explanations:
1- It is prezzo fisso (fixed price and/or fixed menu). In these restaurants, the cooks prepare whatever is freshest and available at the market that morning; everyone pays the same price and eats the same food. In my experience, this is the best way to eat. It takes the pressure out of ordering and replaces it with a trust. You trust that the cook will give you something good to eat. The restaurant trusts that you will like what they serve, enough that they take the decision out of your hands. If mutual trust is what you seek, then sit back and relax. Most of the time, you'll be in good hands.
The food served in these restaurants is usually good and you will be glad you stumbled upon the place. However, you will find some prezzo fisso restaurants that are so well established and so overrun with tourists that the restaurants don't feel the need to search for the fresh ingredients of the day anymore. They decide to cook the same thing daily and only change the menu when winter comes. There are quite a handful of these restaurants in Rome. they're very famous, everybody praises them, and everybody recommends them to everybody else. The restaurants have more customers than they have tables to sit them, and while the profit pouring in, the food stays stale.
2- There is no need for menu because it's a *very* local restaurant. You ask what is being served and what's good; the waiter recites the menu from his head and makes suggestions. You select a dish and if you can't find what you like, you can always ask for something else. Usually, the cook will have no problem cooking it for you. This situation requires a mutual understanding of the language, although it seems to me that when food is concerned, somehow people always manage to get the message across. Leave a Comment Theme: Italian
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As with everything else, Italian drinks have their time and place.
The drinks from late afternoon to the moment preceding a meal are aperitivi. In the early evening, when people stop in bars for a drink, it's "l'ora dell'aperitivo", although nowadays many bars have adopted the American term of "happy hour".
Aperitivi are light white wine (prosecco) or wine-based drinks with herbal flavor (Martini, Campari, Punt e Mes, Aperol). If you don't imbibe, ask for an "analcolico" (non-alcoholic drink).
Wine always accompanies meals. If you don't know what wine to order, just ask for the house wine. Italian house wine is good in general and excellent on occasion.
Dessert wine (Marsala, Visciola, Moscato, vin santo) is served with cheese or dessert. Dessert wine is sweet; it should be drunk immediately before dessert, rather than simultaneous to dessert.
The exception is when vin santo is served with cantucci: You dunk the biscotti, eat them, and drink the rest of the wine afterward. In this case, the hard and dry biscotti go very well together with the vin santo.
Drinks that help settle your stomach after a meal are digestivi. Grappa is the most famous. It has a high degree of alcohol and comes with or without fruit flavor. Montenegro and Ramazzotti are also very popular.
Fruit liqueurs limoncello, arancello, fragolino are used both as aperitivi and digestive. Moscato is also used as aperitivo.
Besides wine, water is a big part of an Italian meal. Either naturale or gassata, water is brought to the table in bottles since the high calcium level is a big deterrent to tap water drinking. In certain regions of the country, however, you can ask for tap water (acqua normale) and it'll come free of charge.
Coffee, as I've stated in a previous tip, is to be drunk at the end of the meal. If you ask for it during the meal, most restaurants will frown upon the request and some even refuse to carry out the order. If you need a caffeine kick with your meal, try Coca Cola instead. Leave a Comment Theme: Italian
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Ristorante Novecento is located at Hotel Rovereto just across the road from Hotel Leon D'oro where we were staying. It is situated approximately 200 metres from the Central Railway Station in the heart of Rovereto. The restaurant is beautifully decorated with impressive lighting. The restaurant is comparatively large and has seating capacity for at least 100 diners. The restaurant's services are impeccable it has to be said.
The following were the set dinner menu (3 courses) in Italian which we ordered:-
1) Pennette all'amatriciana (photo 2)
2) Faraona al forno/Polenta - Polenta (photo 3)
3) Semifreddo della casa con salsa al cioccolato (photo 4) Leave a Comment Theme: ItalianPrice: US$21-30 » Currency ConverterComparison: about averageAddress: Corso Rosmini 82/D, RoveretoDirections: Located at Hotel Rovereto just across the road from Hotel Leon D'oro, approximately 200 metres away from the Railway Station.
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Ristorante La Fayette is located at Grand Hotel Boston, just beside Grand Hotel Terme where we were staying. These two hotels are two different entities by themselves and under separate management. We had our dinner nightly at the restaurant during our four night stay in Chianciano Terme. The set menu is not the same every night. Even the Chef's Appetizer is not the same every night! The food is considered good and delicious and the services are impeccable. We had really enjoyed our dinner in the restaurant especially the impressive Chef's Appetizer which really gave you lots of appetite.
The following are the set dinner menu for Tuesday night:-
1) Chef's Appetizer buffet - eat as much as you want (photo 1)
2) Spelt soup (photo 2)
3) Cannelloni pasta Tuscany style (photo 3)
4) Roast pork loin with French fries (photo 4)
5) Dessert (photo 5) Leave a Comment Theme: ItalianPrice: US$21-30 » Currency ConverterComparison: about averageAddress: Grand Hotel Boston, Chianciano Terme%cDirections: Located at Grand Hotel Boston, next to Grand Hotel Terme at New Town Square in Chianciano Terme.
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Trattoria "Leoncino" is one of the best restaurants in area of Vicenza. It is situated in Altavilla Vicentina, a few kilometres is approaching to the city of Vicenza. Trattoria isn't a fancy looking restaurant, however, it is a place where you can enjoy in excellent food.
The working hour is from 12:00 to 15:00, and from 20:00 to 23:00.
It is closed on Sunday and Monday.
The first dish I had was "Tavola freda", with various kind of seafood,
- then I ordered "Baccala al Vicentino" (cod-fish with hard corn-mush), which is the famous speciality of Vicenza, known in the whole Italy,
- after baccala you must order frizzante type of wine, my suggestion is Pinot,
- at the end I had esspresso.
The price I paid, euros 25,00 Leave a Comment
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While visiting in Tuscany, we stayed a few nights in lovely Cortona. The first evening, we ate in Trattoria La Grotta. What an experience! It was a two-hour taste fest.
There was an attractive German family that sat next to us with three darling daughters. They were so well behaved and cute that we asked to take their photograph, and we did.
The atmosphere was so pleasant with stone walls and wooden trim. We sat at a table for two with fresh flowers and white tableclothe that was pristine. The waiter was efficient, clever, and quite friendly. We were never rushed, and all of our questions were answered with a smile.
We had the best bruchetta ever. My Taglittarre and Pomodor Sauce was perfect as was the Insalata Mista with fresh, ripe tomatoe slices with fresh cheese on top. My fresh strawberries and cream completed a delicious, lesisurely meal.
Allan "raved" about his huge Tuscan steak, fresh spinach, and his cream amaretto dessert with its crunchy top.
We often remember with great fondness this quaint trattoria called "Tratooria La Grotta." Leave a Comment Theme: ItalianPrice: US$21-30 » Currency ConverterComparison: about averagePhone: 0575-630271Directions: Piazzetta Baldelli, Cortona
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Trattoria "Tre Marchetti da Barca" is the best restaurant in Verona and one of the best in whole Italy. It is tiny, cosy, full of people and noisy restaurant.
The restaurant offers very traditional and home-based type of food. Here you can taste Italy "on the table".
I suggest you to book your place in advance!
During the Summer Opera Season it is open from 12:00 to 04:00.
This place is the icon of Verona and the Veneto cuisine, it is a mom and grandma cuisine!!!
My suggestion:
- bigoli - fantastic pasta made by hand,
- pig shrimps with beans,
- white wine from Custozza.
It is very expensive restaurant, from 40 - 60 euros, but it worth all money you spend. Leave a Comment Theme: ItalianPrice: US$41 and up » Currency ConverterComparison: most expensiveAddress: Vicolo The Marcchetti 19BPhone: 045/8030463Directions: Less the 10 meters from Arena
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This is another suggestion what to eat in Italy when too hot. You'll feel like sated and yet very relaxed in your stomach.
The dish you see is called "riso con gamberoni" - rice with crab-fish. Yes, it is very light dish but in the same time fed up and cheap. This kind of the dish can be ordered in most of the Italian restaurants. Leave a Comment Theme: ItalianPrice: less than US$10 » Currency ConverterComparison: less expensive than average
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on June 2, 2005
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