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Eating in Italy, few questions

I'm beginning to look at restaurants that my wife and I would love to visit/try, however, I have a few questions.

I have noticed that most menus have a few categories (starters, second course, main course, dessert, etc) are you expected to order all three courses? At these places with the multiple courses, are portions smaller than what we would normally find here in the US?

We found some nice restaurants we would like to go to, but some require reservations via phone. Obviously it can be a pretty big charge to call over to Italy from the States. How should we go about this?

Thanks in advance!

Posted by
5316 posts

Some will say you should order all four courses--but of course not! Order what you want. Some say portions are smaller, and for the most part I would agree, but this varies. In Puglia, I found the portions enormous. I have been places where the appetizer plate would have been sufficient. Overall, I think an appetizer with either a primi or secondi is ample. Or a primi or secondi plus whatever seasonal veg they have on offer as contorni. It is a rare occasion that I could eat all four courses.
I have emailed places in advance to make reservations before--perhaps that is an option?

Posted by
285 posts

In my experience there is no requirement to order from all categories, I went to restaurants in Venice, Rome, Volterra, Cinque Terre, and others. No issue.

I made reservations at just once place in Venice, the day before because we went in and they were full up but they looked amazing. Didn't want to miss it.

I would imagine, if they are more upscale then perhaps rez are needed but that is a lot of planning. You might find the look is different in person, or that something else is more appealing!

Portions seemed about the same to me, the fancier the place the smaller they are :)

Also, dinner takes longer than we are used to. Your butt might get tired, mine did lol.

Either way, enjoy!

Posted by
63 posts

In two weeks of traveling in Italy we never ordered all four courses and never detected any problem with this. In regard to reservations, there are so many wonderful restaurants in every city in Italy, we never had any problem finding a wonderful place to eat without reservations.

Posted by
2124 posts

We just got back last month from Rome and Sorrento, and most nights my wife and I would share an appetizer, share a salad, each order a pasta or secondi, then share a dolce dessert. No problem whatsoever, at least at the non-touristed up places we dined.

Posted by
2393 posts

We also share...we usually order 1 from each category and share...unless dessert is awesome then there is no sharing!

Posted by
11613 posts

It's fine to share a few things. With friends, we sometimes split an antipasto or two (the house specialty ones are usually large enough to split among two or three). At most places you can order a half-portion of pasta (gives you the chance to try two different ones) which costs a little more than half the full plate price. Then a full secondo with a contorno or two to share, or a salad. You can mix and match these, you don't have to order all of them at one meal.

Posted by
507 posts

No, a Primo is for a less hungry person, a Secondo can be ordered for a person who prefers pasta, and a secondo can be ordered for someone who wants meat. Feel free to order things to share as well. Just order what you want. Never had any issue with that.

If your restaurant requires a phone call, consider having your hotel concierge call for you when you check in. If it's hard to get a table, bite the bullet and call well ahead of time.

Posted by
824 posts

I found that portions in a "tourist oriented" restaurant were a lot larger than in restaurants which catered mainly to locals - and the prices also reflected the portion sizes. I also found that most restaurants had no problem allowing you and your travel partner(s) to share first and second courses if you asked politely while ordering. There may be a slight plate sharing charge as you are using additional service sets but it is understandable when you think about it.

You will find restaurant prices throughout Europe to be a lot higher than in the USA because of many factors. There isn't the pressure to "turn the table over" and all the employs are receiving a "living wage." Just budget accordingly.

Taking home leftovers is not a common occurrence in Italy (or elsewhere in Europe). Unless the establishment is known for "take-away", they probably don't even have take-away containers. And the terminology "doggie bag" will probably be totally foreign (or offensive) to them.

If you find a few restaurants that you really want to try but they require reservations in advance, you might want to look into Skype Voice Calling or Google/Gmail Voice Calling. These are voice-over-internet-protocol services that allow you to call anywhere in the world for a very low cost using you computer (or mobile device).

Posted by
16232 posts

Italian Eating rules:
ANTIPASTO: this is appetizers.
PRIMO (first course): This is a pasta dish or a sometime a soup.
SECONDO (second course): this is the main dish, usually meat or fish, but some vegetarian dishes are available too.
CONTORNO (side dish): these are vegetables or salad. Contorno is ordered together with the Secondo.
DOLCE: dessert
FRUTTA: fruit. Generally Italians end the meal with some fruit (I guess that is the dessert)

Typically Italians will eat (both at home and at restaurant) only the Primo and the Secondo with Contorno, plus a piece of fruit to end the meal. However those who care about dieting a bit, may skip either the Primo or the Secondo, or maybe share one of the two. Generally my wife and I share one of the two. Actually my wife might skip one all together and leave the rest to me. But that is why when I go to Italy they think I'm Tony Soprano (James Gandolfini).

And yes, portions are not humongous like in the US, so you can probably handle a primo and a secondo and not explode at the table (but maybe not a small woman).

The Antipasto and also the Dolce, is really something that most Italians regularly skip, unless it's a special occasion (like a wedding or holiday). I rarely order it, but only if I can share one with friends or family just to taste (and only if it's something unique that is hard to find back in the US.

Posted by
16232 posts

I don't think I've ever reserved a table in Italy. But I don't go to superfancy places. You can do so when you are there on the day you go or the day before, no need to reserve from the US.

Posted by
2124 posts

You will find restaurant prices throughout Europe to be a lot higher
than in the USA because of many factors. There isn't the pressure to
"turn the table over" and all the employs are receiving a "living
wage." Just budget accordingly.

No way. We traveled in Paris, Switzerland and Italy in 2015, then Rome & Sorrento a month ago. If you weren't careful in Paris or Lucerne, you could get charged more than one would think is a value, maybe 100 Euro for two people at the touristy places without wine. But at a nice place here you're going to get charged that.

In Italy, however, for the 2015 trip and this year's visit, we dined for less than we'd get charged for comparable meals in the U.S., most definitely. We did our research and made sure we weren't going to get overcharged at any place in Florence, Rome, Salerno, Amalfi or Sorrento, but for 1 shared antipasto or appetizer, 1 shared insalata, 2 primo or secondi, 1 half-carafe of house wine, and 1 shared dolce--the cost rarely went above 50 Euro total for two, and if we tipped--which is not customary in Italy--it was only a couple Euro, if that.

Since the Euro (until this week) got to be almost par with the US dollar, prices at least at Italian restaurants have been extremely reasonable to my way of thinking.

Posted by
3812 posts

PRIMO (first course): This is a pasta dish or a sometime a soup.

Or rice, or gnocchi, or stuffed ravioli (called agnolotti only in Piedmont). In northern Italy dried pasta (i.e. Spaghetti, penne, rigatoni etc.) is almost impossible to find in restaurants that favor local recipes.

Of course in Venice you'll always find a tourist trap that puts a decent carbonara on the menu, but if you're visiting Turin, Bologna or Genoa you must look for a Roman restaurant to get a good one.

It's interesting what you wrote because the milanese chefs I know agree that these days the antipasto is reigning over the other dishes . People in Milan want an antipasto & a primo or an antipasto & a Secondo, but almost never a primo followed by a secondo. They joke saying that in Milan everybody is always on diet, but I think there are other reasons: the antipasti are often the most interesting/creative dishes on menus.
Milan is not Italy, of course, but those differences are interesting.

Posted by
2334 posts

We often stop into a restaurant when they are open during the noon hour to make a reservation for dinner. For us, this is easier than telephoning. For most places, this works very well. As someone else mentioned, if it's a particularly hard table to get, this may not work.

Posted by
32402 posts

As the others have mentioned, there's no expectation that you have to order the "full meal deal" when dining in Italy. I typically just have Contorni or Inslata, a Primo dish (Pasta) and of course some Vino (usually Rosso) and a bottle of water. That's all I can eat so there's absolutely no point in ordering more.

One point to mention about the water is that it's not common to get tap water with meals in Italy. Restaurants serve either Acqua Naturale or Gassata / Frizzante bottled water (your choice). Ice is sometimes difficult to get (especially at smaller restaurants) so I prefer to order a small bottle of water as it's usually well chilled. If you want to try ordering tap water, the term is acqua del rubinetto.

One other point to mention is that if you're stopping for a coffee or whatever for a break in the afternoon, it's cheaper to stand at the bar rather than sitting down (especially if you're sitting in an outdoor patio).

You may find this interesting - http://www.huffingtonpost.com/whitney-richelle/americans-dining-in-italy_b_4097722.html

Posted by
105 posts

Hi James! I just got back from a 10-day trip to Italy on April 13. We never once ordered something from all portions of the menu in one sitting. The heaviest meal we had was one dinner in Cinque Terre. We ordered:
Mussels antipasto (shared)
Ravioli primo (individual)
Trofie primo (individual)
Prawns secondo (shared)
Panna cotta dolce (shared)

Typically with meals, we found ourselves splitting one appetizer, each ordering a primo and/or secondo as our main dish, then splitting one dessert. The severs never asked us about a dish if we did not order it (like, "and for contorno?"). We didn't have to say, "we're not ordering contorno" or anything.

One restaurant we ate at in Venice required reservations by phone. I emailed our Venice hotel and asked if they could call on our behalf and set up a reservation for us, which they did.

Posted by
8247 posts

I for the most part agree with the above comments in that there is no expectation that you would order 5 courses each, so for a basic meal for two, sharing an antipasto, each ordering a primi or a secondo (most likely to share each), then maybe a dessert, is typical.

I would encourage you though to consider finding the opportunity to eat in the classical Italian manner, with a larger group and planning on sitting longer (maybe 2+ hours) Getting a larger group may be difficult, but taking your time is within the reach of a couple.

My preferred meal for two would be one or two Antipasti, I agree they can be the star of the meal, wine of course plus a bottle of mineral water, either still or with gas, Pasta I think is a must, each region has it's specialty (maybe a risotto), then either meat or fish, depending on the region, definitely a contorno, you will get the freshest vegetables, and maybe a dessert if they offer something special (otherwise, a gelato while walking off the meal is my preference). The only Italian tradition I cannot handle though is a coffee after the meal, I cannot drink coffee after noon, but I do like a liquor, a digestive, as a nice cap to meal, especially if there is some local specialty.

As for cost, my experience is that I can get all of that for about the same as I can get a meal for two at Olive Garden, you judge the quality of the food, I think the major cost variation is with the wine. If you do not drink wine, comparative cost can be different, but for what you get a glass of wine in the US, you can get a large carafe or bottle in Italy

Posted by
2148 posts

We have found that asking our hotel to call and make a dinner reservation always works great.

Posted by
4535 posts

The one thing I would add is that in my experience, if you each order various courses, those courses come out in order. So if your companion orders an anti-pasta for a main plate, and you order the secondi as a main plate, don't expect them to arrive at the same time. Most restaurants will do so if you ask, but don't assume. My wife and I almost always share small plates/desserts and have our own main plate.

Posted by
16232 posts

What would the Milanese chefs in the many pretentious restaurants in Milan know, Dario?
Do they make traditional Italian food in those fancy Milanese restaurants anymore? Or has Milan become just another yuppie global elite capital, like NYC, London, etc.?
Is Milan even in Italy anymore?
Do ordinary Italian families eat antipasti on a regular basis at home every day like they do with the primo or secondo? I don't think so. Maybe the global yuppies eating every day at those fancy Milan restaurants do.

Posted by
55 posts

georgeff.james89,
Order as much or as little as you feel like eating. Nobody will be offended and you won't create an international incident. Italians often order just one or two courses. Additionally, sometimes a primi piatto of pasta can be portioned smaller if it's being followed by a secondo.

On average, the portion sizes tend to be smaller in Italy than in the US. You might eat lightly one day and treat yourself to a four course Italian dinner. If you do, don't be surprised to be rewarded with a gratis grappa or limoncello - or both! I decided to go for the four course option at our last dinner in Milan a few years ago and happened to pick a restaurant that served American sized portions! I thought that I was going to burst. No matter how many courses you have, if you avoid the touristy places, you will likely dine better than you ever have before.

Buon viaggio e buon appetito!

Posted by
3812 posts

What would the Milanese chefs in the many pretentious restaurants in Milan know, Dario?

If you knew how many years of traditional dishes made only and exactly by the book you must survive (i.e. not get bored to death) to become a pretentious Milanese chef... trust me, You wouldn't ask it. But as I wrote, Milan is not Italy.

Incidentally note that in many southern homes like mine a veggies starter was eaten daily, while a main course based on meat or fish was not: up to the 50s it would have been too expensive, after it was just the normal way of cooking and eating at home.

Posted by
490 posts

Order what you want just like the USA...

E-mail your hotel (s) and have them make the reservations...have them confirm them by e-mail with you and RE-CONFIRM by phone when you arrrive. Enjoy!