Italy culinary stereotypes

Italian culinary stereotypes & gastronomic misconceptions

The American versions of Italian cuisine—whether brought over by immigrants years ago or recently imported by California chefs—usually take a number of liberties with their inspiration.

For instance, several foods you won't find in Italy are: spaghetti and meatballs, hoagies (grinders, subs, torpedoes, or whatever they call them where you live), Italian ices, and deep-dish pizzas (Italian ones are usually very thin and very crispy; if you want deep dish, go to Chicago, where they have raised it to an art form).

The common stereotypes of Italian cuisine are often off the mark as well. The Italians don't eat only pasta—in the north you're more likely to find risotto and polenta.

Sure, you'll find a McDonald's in the heart of every city, and you'll probably find yourself ordering il Big Mac on occasion (Mickey D's almost always has great clean bathrooms), but I'd recommend sticking to local restaurants.

Search out restaurants with the most authentic food and atmosphere. Be daring—order what you don't recognize on the menu, lubricate your meal with copious amounts of local wine or beer, and have a grand old time.

So what's so different about an Italian restaurant?

Italian restaurants differ from American restaurants in several ways. Most differences are tiny and even petty; I only point them out because even little changes can put one off, and I would hate unprepared folks to start getting cross when the waiter doesn't bring them free glasses of water when they sit down. If you know to expect the little differences, you can start to revel in them.

The interior design is not a good indication of food quality. Some of the very best restaurants can look much the worse for wear.
Water does not come to your table automatically. When you order water, you get to choose between fizzy or non-fizzy bottled mineral water. (You can also order water from the tap, but the bottled stuff tastes better.)
Italians hardly ever use ice in their drinks, nor do they usually butter their bread (it tastes good enough on its own).
Service is much more professional, but still very friendly. Waiters don't rush up to introduce themselves by first name and then interrupt every time your mouth is full; rather they appear when you need them and are very helpful.
Portions are often smaller, but it's because you're expected to order more courses.
Every dish ordered is served on a separate plate, so don't expect a little pile of vegetables to come automatically next to your steak. You have to order any contorno (side dish) separately, if you want one. (Note: A few Italian restaurants have started experimenting with pairing a contorno and a main and serving them together, and they may make a big deal out of this—it may seem normal to you, but it's a revolution in Italy,)
The salad (insalata) comes at the end of the meal, before dessert (which makes a lot more sense, digestively).
You can't take it with you. Italians don't do the doggy bag thing, and many will be highly confused if you point to your half-eaten plate and ask for the balance of your meal to go—especially if you use the term "doggy bag." I've seen many comical exchanges between American diners and Italian waiters who either are (a) dumbfounded as to why you don't wish to finish your dinner in the restaurant, (b) insulted when they mistake your intentions to be a belief that their fine cooking is only good enough for your dog, or (c) horrified and disgusted as they hasten to assure you that "Eet is veal, veal! Eet come from cow, not from dog!"
The tip (call it the "servizio") is often included in the bill, so always ask. Many restaurants include the servizio (service charge) of 10–15%. This fact—and the precise amount—is usually printed somewhere on the menu (look for some fine print–style, italicized text near the bottom or on the back). It will either say servizio incluso or servizio compreso, sometimes with a percentage. If it says servizio non incluso or servizio non compreso, tip is not included and you should leave the usual 10%–15%. (In some cases coperto and servizio are both inlcuded. Sweet!)

You can also always just ask the waiter: "É incluso il servizio" ("Is service included?"). If the answer is yes, that covers your tip—though it's customary to leave behind an extra Euro per person if service was extra-good. If the answer is no, tip 15% or so as you usually would.

Dining links

Tips

About the restaurant star ratings (☆☆☆ to ★★★)

You will notice that all restaurants (and sights and hotels) on this site have a ReidsItaly.com star designation from ☆☆☆ to ★★★.

This merely indicates that I feel these eateries offer a little something that makes them special (or extra-special, or extra-extra special, etc.).

These star ratings are entirely based on personal opinion, and have nothing to do with any official local restaurant ratings or grades.

In general, a pricier restaurant has to impress me that it is worth the added expense.

This is why I give ★★★ to some inexpensive eateries or sandwich shops that happen provide amazing value for the money—and similarly have ranked a few fancy but notable restaurants just ★★☆.

About the restaurant price brackets (€–€€€)

Here at ReidsItaly.com we simply provide a general price range indicating the general amount you should expect to pay for a full meal in the eatery.

Each eatery is rated into a price category, which indicates—very roughly—what you could expect to pay, per person, for a standard full meal: Three courses—primo (first course), secondo (main course), and contorno (side) or dolce (dessert)—plus something to drink.

There are three price ranges, giving you a sense of which restaurants are budget, which are moderate, and which are splurges:

€	under €15
€€	under €40
€€€	over €40

Useful Italian phrases

Dining
Basic phrases
Calendar
Numbers

Useful Italian for dining

English *(inglese)*	Italian (italiano)	Pro-nun-cee-YAY-shun
Where is?	Dov'é	doh-VAY
...a restaurant	un ristorante	oon rees toh-RAHN-tay
...a casual restaurant	una trattoria un'osteria	oo-nah trah-toar-RHEE-yah oon ohst-air-EE-yah
I would like to reserve...	Vorrei prenotare...	voar-RAY pray-note-ARE-eh
a table for two	una tavola per due	oo-nah TAH-voal-lah pair DOO-way
...for 7pm	per le sette	pair lay SET-tay
...for 7:30pm	per le sette e mezzo	pair lay SET-tay eh MET-tzoh
...for 8pm	per le otto	pair lay OH-toh

I would like	Vorrei...	voar-RAY
...some (of)	un pó (di)	oon POH (dee)
...this	questo	KWAY-sto
...that	quello	KWEL-loh
chicken	pollo	POL-loh
steak	bistecca	bee-STEAK-ah
...rare	al sangue	ahl SAN-gway
...medium	rosato	ro-ZA-to
...well done	ben cotto	ben KO-to
veal	vitello	vee-TEL-oh
fish	pesce	PEH-shay
meat	carne	KAR-neh
I am vegetarian	sono vegetariano	SO-no veg-eh-tair-ee-YAH-no
side dish [veggies always come seperately]	cotorno	kon-TOR-no
dessert	dolce	DOAL-chay
and	e	ay
...a glass of	un bicchiere di	oon bee-key-YAIR-eh dee
...a bottle of	una bottiglia di	oo-na boh-TEEL-ya dee
...a half-liter of	mezzo litro di	MET-tzoh LEE-tro dee
...fizzy water	acqua gassata	AH-kwah gah-SAHT-tah
...still water	acqua non gassata	AH-kwah noan gah-SAHT-tah
...red wine	vino rosso	VEE-noh ROH-so
...white wine	vino bianco	VEE-noh bee-YAHN-koh
...beer	birra	BEER-a
Check, please	Il conto, per favore	eel COAN-toh pair fah-VOAR-eh
Is service included?	É incluso il servizio?	ay een-CLOU-so eel sair-VEET-zee-yo

Basic phrases in Italian

English (inglese)	Italian (italiano)	pro-nun-see-YAY-shun
thank you	grazie	GRAT-tzee-yay
please	per favore	pair fa-VOHR-ray
yes	si	see
no	no	no
Do you speak English?	Parla Inglese?	PAR-la een-GLAY-zay
I don't understand	Non capisco	non ka-PEESK-koh
I'm sorry	Mi dispiace	mee dees-pee-YAT-chay
How much is it?	Quanto costa?	KWAN-toh COST-ah
That's too much	É troppo	ay TROH-po

Good day	Buon giorno	bwohn JOUR-noh
Good evening	Buona sera	BWOH-nah SAIR-rah
Good night	Buona notte	BWOH-nah NOTE-tay
Goodbye	Arrivederci	ah-ree-vah-DAIR-chee
Excuse me (to get attention)	Scusi	SKOO-zee
Excuse me (to get past someone)	Permesso	pair-MEH-so

Where is?	Dov'é	doh-VAY
...the bathroom	il bagno	eel BHAN-yoh
...train station	la ferroviaria	lah fair-o-vee-YAR-ree-yah
to the right	à destra	ah DEH-strah
to the left	à sinistra	ah see-NEEST-trah
straight ahead	avanti [or] diritto	ah-VAHN-tee [or] dee-REE-toh
information	informazione	in-for-ma-tzee-OH-nay

Days, months, and other calendar items in Italian

English (*inglese*)	Italian (italiano)	Pro-nun-cee-YAY-shun
When is it open?	Quando é aperto?	KWAN-doh ay ah-PAIR-toh
When does it close?	Quando si chiude?	KWAN-doh see key-YOU-day
At what time...	a che ora	a kay O-rah

Yesterday	ieri	ee-YAIR-ee
Today	oggi	OH-jee
Tomorrow	domani	doh-MAHN-nee
Day after tomorrow	dopo domani	DOH-poh doh-MAHN-nee

a day	un giorno	oon je-YOR-no
Monday	Lunedí	loo-nay-DEE
Tuesday	Martedí	mar-tay-DEE
Wednesday	Mercoledí	mair-coh-lay-DEE
Thursday	Giovedí	jo-vay-DEE
Friday	Venerdí	ven-nair-DEE
Saturday	Sabato	SAH-baa-toh
Sunday	Domenica	doh-MEN-nee-ka

Mon-Sat	Feriali	fair-ee-YAHL-ee
Sun & holidays	Festivi	feh-STEE-vee
Daily	Giornaliere	joor-nahl-ee-YAIR-eh

a month	una mese	oon-ah MAY-zay
January	gennaio	jen-NAI-yo
February	febbraio	feh-BRI-yo
March	marzo	MAR-tzoh
April	aprile	ah-PREEL-ay
May	maggio	MAH-jee-oh
June	giugno	JEW-nyoh
July	luglio	LOO-lyoh
August	agosto	ah-GO-sto
September	settembre	set-TEM-bray
October	ottobre	oh-TOE-bray
November	novembre	no-VEM-bray
December	dicembre	de-CHEM-bray

Numbers in Italian

English (*inglese*)	Italian (italiano)	Pro-nun-cee-YAY-shun
1	uno	OO-no
2	due	DOO-way
3	tre	tray
4	quattro	KWAH-troh
5	cinque	CHEEN-kway
6	sei	say
7	sette	SET-tay
8	otto	OH-toh
9	nove	NO-vay
10	dieci	dee-YAY-chee
11	undici	OON-dee-chee
12	dodici	DOH-dee-chee
13	tredici	TRAY-dee-chee
14	quattordici	kwa-TOR-dee-chee
15	quindici	KWEEN-dee-chee
16	sedici	SAY-dee-chee
17	diciasette	dee-chee-ya-SET-tay
18	diciotto	dee-CHO-toh
19	diciannove	dee-chee-ya-NO-vay
20	venti	VENT-tee
21*	vent'uno*	vent-OO-no
22*	venti due*	VENT-tee DOO-way
23*	venti tre*	VENT-tee TRAY
30	trenta	TRAYN-tah
40	quaranta	kwa-RAHN-tah
50	cinquanta	cheen-KWAN-tah
60	sessanta	say-SAHN-tah
70	settanta	seh-TAHN-tah
80	ottanta	oh-TAHN-tah
90	novanta	no-VAHN-tah
100	cento	CHEN-toh
1,000	mille	MEEL-lay
5,000	cinque milla	CHEEN-kway MEEL-lah
10,000	dieci milla	dee-YAY-chee MEEL-lah

* You can use this formula for all Italian ten-place numbers—so 31 is trent'uno, 32 is trenta due, 33 is trenta tre, etc. Note that—like uno (one), otto (eight) also starts with a vowel—all "-8" numbers are also abbreviated (vent'otto, trent'otto, etc.).

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