Italians view food as an art form to be enjoyed slowly rather than just fuel. Italian cuisine varies widely by region due to the diverse peoples who have inhabited different areas. Meals generally consist of multiple courses - antipasti, a pasta or rice course, then meat or fish. Wine is usually consumed with meals rather than to excess. Americans should not expect the same foods they are used to at home and should adapt to the Italian philosophy and pace of dining.

1. La cucina italiana
Christopher E. Renner
Instructor of Italian, Kansas State University

2. Agenda:
Culinary differences between the US and Italy;
regional differences in Italy
Eating by the season and Slow Food
Meal structure and eating times
The hows - what to do and not do
Where to take your palate

3. Culinary Differences
In the introduction to “Why Italians love to talk about food” Umberto Eco
states:
“a gourmet is not merely someone who is content with an excellent
duck à l’orange or a generous portion of Volga caviar... this person
is just a normal individual whose tastes haven’t been perverted by
McDonald’s. A gourmet, an epicure, a true enthusiast of cuisine, is
someone capable of travelling hundreds of kilometers to go to that
special restaurant where they make the very best duck à l’orange
in the world.”
You might be poor college students, but you are going to Italy, the land
where food is not something to be quickly inhaled, but to be enjoyed,
savored, and most of all to dazzle your senses.

4. Culinary Differences
Italy, as you will discover is very different from where we live. Open
spaces are rare; the horizon never expands to the titanic proportions we
can experience on a walk along the top of a flint hill. Roads are rarely
straight, with a couple exceptions in the Po Valley, and your vision is
often limited to a couple of miles at the most, either by a hill or a
mountain, village, or woods.
As you traverse Italy, over the Apennines, you will get the impression
that you are entering another country from where you have just come.
Even the seas are different: those of the Tyrrhenian coast offer
panoramas, beaches of a sort, and coastlines very different from those
of the Adriatic seaboard, not to mention the great islands.

5. Culinary Differences
This geographical variety also applies not only to Italy’s landscape, but
also to her peoples. Yes peoples.
In the north you have the descendants of the Celtic and Ligurian tribes
who inhabited the north long before the Romans appeared on the scene.
In the east were Illyrians, the the central west region were Etruscans and
various Italic tribes. In the south, Magna Grecia - Greater Greece - spread
over the heel and toe of Italy’s boot, half way up the peninsula and across
Sicily and Sardinia.
Following the Romans came the Goths, the Lombards, the Arabs, and the
Normans, then the Spanish, French, and Austrians.
All these peoples have created a cuisine that is unlike any other in the
world.

6. This diversity of peoples means that Italian cuisine is very different from
region to region. What is often thought of “Italian” food in the US, is not
even found in most parts of Italy.
Tomato sauce is a prime example of this... the tomato is a southern Italian
tradition. Northern pasta dishes are more often made with vegetables,
legumes or cream than with tomato. In the Veneto, pasta takes a back
seat to polenta - a corn meal mush ate with hearty stews.
This is also reflected in the bread as well, with southern bread being
heartier and with salt, while northern breads will be drier, more compact
and without salt.
What this means for Americans and our expectation of homogeneity - we
can find the same food in New York as we do in Dodge City - does NOT
exist. Each region has it cuisine and it will be as different as the people
who inhabit the area.
Culinary Differences

7. Americans eat to survive.
Italians survive to eat.
Philosophy of Food - For Italians food is more than fuel; it is part of life,
family, celebratory moments, and it is important in everyday life as
something to be appreciated with a sense of artistry and delight.
For the U.S., food is regarded as fuel, simply a physical necessity.
As such Italians would never -
grab a bite on the run, then walk and eat
however attitudes are changing, younger people often eat fast
food on the run
Due to the excessive littering caused by tourists eating on the
go, Rome has passed an ordinance that prohibits eating on the
streets. The fine: 500€!
Culinary Differences

8. Culinary Differences
The words “fast” and “food” can’t go in
the same sentence. “Slow” and “food”
are a perfect match, instead.
Enjoying your meal slowly and
comfortably at the table, more or less at
the same time every day, is something
given for granted in Italy.
Don’t run into a restaurant thinking you
will be able to “grab a bite.” Plan on a
meal taking 30 minutes at least, a hour
more likely, and 90 minutes as being
normal.

9. Born in Italy, Slow Food is now a global, grassroots
organization with supporters in 150 countries around
the world who are linking the pleasure of good food
with a commitment to their community and the
environment.
It opposes the standardization of taste and culture, and
the unrestrained power of the food industry
multinationals and industrial agriculture. It believes that
everyone has a fundamental right to the pleasure of
good food and consequently the responsibility to
protect the heritage of food, tradition and culture that
make this pleasure possible.
Culinary Differences
Read this!

10. Culinary Differences
Philosophy of Food - Freshness.
Italians simply will not eat food that is not fresh. As a
way to measure freshness, look at "food miles" which
is the distance food travels from where it is grown to
where it is ultimately purchased or consumed.
The U.S. government says food miles in America are
an average of 1,400 miles. This makes sense when
you consider that Heinz ketchup eaten in California is
made with California-grown tomatoes shipped to
Canada for processing and returned in bottles.
In Italy food travels an average of 27 miles. Italians
eat food that's grown close to where they live.

11. Culinary Differences
Philosophy of Food - Ingredients
The hallmark of great Italian cuisine is the use of high
quality ingredients, combined sensibly and prepared
simply for maximum flavor.
Using fresh product, Italians enhance the inherently
delicious flavors of food with simple yet sophisticated
preparation techniques.
Italian cuisine is very seasonal. The high priority placed
on the use of fresh, seasonal produce distinguishes the
cuisine of Italy.
Americans on the other hand, add many different
flavors to most foods and mask its authentic taste.

12. Misconceptions...
Food and drinks are normally
served close to ambient
temperatures.
It is a common Italian belief that consuming
extremely hot or cold food does not aid
digestion, and Italians are all about
digestion. Ice is not common, and water is
seldom served from the tap, even though
95% of Italy's tap water is quite safe to
drink. Italians like their bottled water with
and without gas.

13. You won't be served warm soft
bread with olive oil for dunking or
butter for slathering.
It just doesn't happen anywhere in Italy that I am
aware of, with the exception of olive oil tasting.
Buttery garlic bread is not something I have ever
seen in all my years of living in Italy. The closest I
have come across garlic bread is in the Tuscan
tradition of making bruschetta or crostini, where
the bread is toasted and rubbed with a raw clove
of garlic and either topped with diced tomatoes
and drizzled with oil, or placed at the bottom of a
bowl of bean soup.
Misconceptions...

14. Misconceptions...
When ordering pizza for
the first time in Italy, don’t
expect Pizza Hut.
Firstly, the best pizza comes from an
establishment that cooks them in a
wood-fired oven, not always found at
lunchtime. Secondly, pizza comes in one
size, usually around 10" and is
considered a one-person serving. You
can split it and even share it as an
antipasto for a group, although it usually
is so good, you'll quickly adapt to having
one all to yourself.

15. Misconceptions...
Red sauce with mozzarella is not
always the standard base from
which you add the toppings. White
pizza - without tomato sauce -
comes in many varieties.
Toppings are endless, although
more sparsely added, and thin crust
is the rule. Crusts will vary from
chewy to as crispy as a cracker,
depending on the chef's specialty.
Thicker crusts fall under the
focaccia heading and are often sold
by the rectangle, cut from large
sheet pans and slightly warmed in
the oven of a focacceria.

16. Misconceptions...
it will come as a huge shock when it arrives
adorned with mild red and yellow peppers,
even though that is exactly what you
ordered. There won't be any familiar spicy
salami in sight.
You needed to order the salsiccia
piccante to get what we know as a
pepperoni pizza.
Pepperoni is the Italian word for peppers
of any type.
When ordering Americans' number one favorite
pizza topping, pepperoni,

17. Misconceptions...
You will find far less garlic
in most dishes than what
most of us would have
thought. Often, if you use onions in a
dish, you don't use garlic, and vice versa.
While there are some very creamy,
garlicky heavily-spiced dishes, they are
more the exception than the rule.

18. Misconceptions...
Thinly sliced meats are the norm.
Pasta and risotto will be decidedly al
dente and lightly sauced or studded with
ingredients, when cooked to perfection.
Meatballs, or polpette as they are called,
will be a separate meat dish served after
the pasta.
Uncomplicated fresh food calling forth the
subtlety of clean, clear flavor is what most
Italians adore.
Dishes tend to be less creamy or cheesy and far
less adorned than what most Americans are
accustomed to.

19. Meal times...
Italian culinary habits are changing. With globalization and
especially with the development of the European Union, the tradition
of the 3-hour Italian lunch is coming to an end.
Today in most of the northern Italian cities, workers often only have
an hour to and hour and a half for lunch. Most factories do not stop
production for lunch, like they did until the 1980s, and shops now
have “continuous hours” - meaning they too no longer close for the
midday.
As a result, the traditional heavy meal of two or three courses is now
eaten in the evening with the family at home.
Il pranzo is now a lighter, one course, meal for people working in
offices and shops.

20. Meal times...One thing that hasn’t changed is when people eat.
In the north lunch is usually between 1:00 - 3:00 pm.
In central and southern Italy, lunch is from 1:30/2:00 pm - 4:00 pm.
The evening meal in the north is usually after 8:00 pm in the summer
and earlier in the winter.
Whereas in the south the evening meal is later; in the summer is can
be 10:30 - 11:00 pm and in the winter it is usually around between 8:00
- 9:00 pm.
In addition to the main meals, Italians are notorious snackers...
“Una merenda” or “uno spuntino" - coffee and a sweet roll/small
sandwich - can be taken at 10:00 - 10:30 am; or around 11:30 am; then
again around 5:00 pm or 6:00 pm. Lo spuntino means “a snack” but is
usually used to refer to having a small sandwich along with coffee or a
drink... whenever you feel the urge.

21. The Italian mealThey say only 5% of Italians eat out on Sundays, while 95% are at home
eating as much as humanly possible. Sunday pranzo is usually spent at
some relatives’ home, or at the grandparents’ home. Lunch begins in time
to have most of the meal (read: various first courses) completed before
the Sunday soccer match begins at 3:00 pm. After all, what comes after la
pasta can easily be eaten after the match has been played.
In any household there is always a grandma or aunt or mother who thinks
you are malnourished, too skinny and need to be filled as a Christmas
turkey.
If you are invited to eat il pranzo di domenica at an Italian’s home, you will
not be able to leave the table if you do not eat every single crumble the
matron of the house thinks you need. Italians do not understand the
words “sono pieno” - I’m full. You cannot be full, there is still more food to
be eaten!
There’s a reason why the Romans had vomitoriums in their homes!

22. The Italian meal
Antipasto:
The meal starts with 'antipasto' which usually
consists of local meats and cheeses but on
special occasions will be an endless stream of
tasty little dishes made mainly from vegetables
and sometimes fish.
In addition to sun dried tomatoes, olives and
grilled eggplant, vegetables are stuffed and
baked, zucchini flowers are stuffed and fried,
frittata, bruschetta, and small tarts come in
varying sizes and combinations.
This is all eaten with freshly baked, crusty
homemade bread.

23. The Italian meal
il Primo:
Next comes the 'primo' or pasta course
which is also eaten with bread.
Pasta preference reflect regional traditions:
In Lombardia and Piemonte the preference
is for risotto dishes. In Emilia Romagna the
preference is for tagliatelle or tortellini
whereas the south prefers cut pastas -
rigatoni, fusilli, penne.
All the carbohydrates are consumed first
leaving the protein to be eaten on its own in
the next course.

24. Some dos and don’tsPasta is never a side dish. This implies that you can’t put pasta next to
your steak.
Every shape of pasta is good for some sauces: olive sauce is great for
penne or rigatoni, but doesn’t match spaghetti which, on the other
hand, are perfect with shellfish.
Ragù does not come in a jar and takes two days to prepare!
Long pastas, i.e., spaghetti, should NEVER be cut. Instead, learn the
basic skill of twirling.
Ketchup is not a sauce, especially a pasta sauce!
Meat-based dishes do not go with pasta, do not ever mix them in the
same dish! Eat pasta first and then meat or fish.
Meatballs with spaghetti, although quite popular in America, is as much
Italian as shepherd’s pie.
The most common meat-based pasta sauces is Bolognese.

25. Some dos and don’ts
Pizza is its own meal. It is not mixed with pasta or rise.
Pizza can be eaten with your hands - one of the few foods which hand use
is permissible - however, most Italians will use cutlery to eat their pizza.
When ordering pizza, one usually does not order a “secondo” but goes
straight to “dolce.”
Here are some basic pizzas:
Marinara - tomato, garlic, oil and oregano.
Margherita - tomato, mozzarella, oil, and basil.
Quattro stagioni - four flavors, divided by a small line of dough.
Calzoni - tomato, ricotta cheese, mozzarella, oil, oregano
Most pizzerias will have their own creations as well.

26. The Italian meal
Il Secondo:
Many chefs complain that the Italian kitchen
places too much emphasis on ‘il primo’ leaving the
second course rather uneventful.
In general, 'secondo' is a piece of fresh meat or
fish which will have been simply grilled and is
served with lemon.
This will be accompanied with either cold, grilled
vegetables drizzled with olive oil or a simple salad
with olive oil, lemon/aceto and salt. In some parts
of Italy there may also be fried potatoes.

27. Some dos and don’ts
Never add parmesan cheese to a fish-based dish or one with
pepperincino (red pepper).
Salads are eaten AFTER the second course; never as an antipasto.
Olive oil, vinegar, lemon and salt are the only ingredients for
dressing salads.
If you are “al dieta” (on a diet) you can sometimes substitute a salad
for il secondo. Tell the waiter: “Sono al dieta. Posso avere un
insalata mista?” The chef will add some vegetables to the salad.
Otherwise expect to have only lettuce.
Never order milk with a meal. Milk is for breakfast.
During a meal, only wine and water are admitted. Sodas and beer
are ok if you are having pizza, but not for coursed meals.

28. Alcohol Consumption
Italians are not big drinkers and they almost never
drink to excess. Wine is consumed with meals as a
way of complimenting the taste of the food, but it is
considered the worst possible behavior to get drunk.
Italians typically regard heavy drinking or getting
drunk with disdain, while Americans look on it with
good humor or even, in men, as a mark of virility.
Because wine is consumed as "part of the meal,"
Italians also learn to drink responsibly at home
when they are still in their teens. As a result,
alcoholism in Italy is much less of a problem than in
the U.S.
Some dos and don’ts

29. Best advice...Eat like the locals to save and savor!
Buy picnic fare at outdoor markets and city
salumerias (Italian delis).
Opt for a take-out panini (sandwich) for lunch from a
bakery.
Buy pizza al taglio (by the slice) from a tiny hole-in-
the-wall pizzeria.
Eat cafeteria-style at a tavola calda (hot table) --
choose from a wide variety of home-style dishes
and pay at the register.
It is hard to eat badly in Italy, but look for a spot
where the locals are eating, pass on the "menu
turistico" and ask for the "menu del giorno" -- the
daily specials.

30. Where to eat...
Ristoranti, trattorie, and osterie
Not too long ago, ristoranti tended to be more elegant and expensive than
trattorie and osterie, which serve traditional, home-style fare in an
atmosphere to match.
But the distinction has blurred considerably, and an osteria in the center of
town might be far fancier (and pricier) than a ristorante across the street.
In any sit-down establishment, be it a ristorante, osteria, or trattoria, you
are generally expected to order at least a two-course meal, such as: a
primo (first course) and a secondo (main course) or a contorno (vegetable
side dish); an antipasto (starter) followed by either a primo or secondo; or
a secondo and a dolce (dessert).

31. Where to eat...
Some recommendations:
a Napoli - Trattoria Nennella, vicolo lungo teatro nuovo, Quartieri Spagnoli.
Traditional Neapolitan food.
A Firenze - Trattoria SABATINO a Firenze Via Pisana, Tel. Fisso: 055
225955. Cheap home-style traditional cooking (next to Porta San Frediano)
A Firenze - Fratelli Briganti in Piazza Giorgini at Via V. Emmanuele.
Rick Steves’ guide book or Lonely Planet - they have never steered me
wrong from Beruit to Cario; from Krakow to Paris.
Avoid the recommendations in Fordor’s or other US guidebooks.
Flush with funds, check out the Michelin Red Guide book. Best restaurants
in the country, usually requiring a year’s tuition to dine.

32. Etiquette...
La tavola italiana...

33. Etiquette...
Italians take their food as it is listed on the menu, seldom if ever making
special requests such as "dressing on the side" or "hold the olive oil."
If you have special dietary needs, however, make them known; they can
usually be accommodated. Although mineral water makes its way to
almost every table, you can order a carafe of tap water (acqua di rubinetto
or acqua semplice) instead, but keep in mind that such water can be
highly chlorinated.
Table manners in Italy are formal; rarely do Italians share food from their
plates - they ask for a second plate and divide the dish.
In a restaurant, be formal and polite with your waiter—no calling across
the room for attention.
Italians do not have a culture of sipping cocktails or chugging pitchers of
beer. Wine, beer, and other alcoholic drinks are almost always consumed
as part of a meal. Public drunkenness is abhorred.
Smoking has been banned in all public establishments, much like in the
United States.
Wiping your bowl clean with a (small) piece of bread is usually considered
a sign of appreciation, not bad manners. Spaghetti should be eaten with a
fork only, although a little help from a spoon won't horrify locals the way
cutting spaghetti into little pieces might. Order your espresso (Italians don't

34. Etiquette...
Smoking has been banned in all public establishments, much like in the
United States.
Wiping your bowl clean with a (small) piece of bread (la scarpetta) is
usually considered a sign of appreciation, not bad manners.
Order your espresso (Italians don't usually drink cappuccino after
breakfast time) after dessert, not with it.
The use of a “take-home” bag is becoming more common for leftovers.
In self-service bars and cafés it's good manners to clean your table before
you leave.
The ONLY FOOD you can eat with your hands is: pizza, grapes, cherries
and olives - and even then I’ve seen Italian eat them with a knife and fork.
Sandwiches are wrapped in paper and are never eaten barehanded.
Always hold sandwiches and pizza with a napkin when eating them.

35. The check...Most restaurants have a cover charge per person, usually listed at the top
of the check as “coperto” or “pane e coperto.” It should be a modest
charge (€1 – €2.50 per person) except at the most expensive restaurants.
Whenever in doubt, ask before you order to avoid unpleasant discussions
later.
Do not ask for separate checks. Divide the total evenly with all parties at
the table.
The price of fish dishes is often given by weight (before cooking), so the
price you see on the menu is for 100 grams of fish, not for the whole dish.
(An average fish portion is about 350 grams.) In Tuscany, bistecca alla
fiorentina (Florentine steak) is also often priced by weight (± €4 for 100
grams or €40 for 1 kilogram [2.2 lbs]).
Major credit cards are widely accepted in Italy, though cash is usually
preferred. More restaurants take Visa and MasterCard than American
Express.

36. The check...
If servizio (usually 10%-15%) is included at the
bottom of the check, no tip is necessary.
If service is not included, leave a tip of up to 10% in
cash. ALWAYS leave your tip in cash.
Usually there will not be a line item on your credit-
card slip for a tip—but even if there is, tip in cash.
Tip checkroom attendants €1 per person and
restroom attendants €0.50 (more in expensive hotels
and restaurants).
In major cities tip €0.50 or more for table service in
cafés.
At a hotel bar tip €1 and up for a round or two of
drinks.

37. The check...
When you leave a dining establishment,
take your meal bill or receipt with you.
Although not a common experience, the
Italian finance (tax) police can approach
you within 100 yards of the establishment
at which you've eaten and ask for a
receipt. If you don't have one, they can fine
you and will fine the business owner for
not providing the receipt.
The measure is intended to prevent tax
evasion; it's not necessary to show
receipts when leaving Italy.