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Eating on a budget, any tips?

My hubbie and I are going to Murren for 4 days then on to Varenna, Firenze, Sienna, and Venice. Does anyone have any advice on how to save a few bucks here and there on meals? For example, when in France we always ordered a carafe or demi- carafe of the vin du pays, and it was just fine. Is there something comparable in Italy and how do you order it?
We know that Europe isn't cheap and that's OK but we're really more interested in seeing the sights and taking in the ambience then spending a load of money at fancy restaurants. Any advice? Thanks!

Posted by
18 posts

Picnic, eat large meal at lunch time at resteraunt, salads, go to farmers market to pick up food... Check guide book, tourist information desk or hotel for recommendations for cafes or shopping at markets.

Posted by
362 posts

In Italy ask for vino da tavola or vino della casa - table wine or house wine.

Posted by
23177 posts

Two meals a day with small snack in the middle. And one meal is the hotel breakfast.

Posted by
1059 posts

In tourist areas, like St. Mark's Square in Venice, it is cheaper by far to just order your food from a take out type eating establishment and sit on a bench outside rather than sitting at a table. If there is any entertainment like music or a view, sitting at a table will be very expensive. In many places you will be able to listen to the music or take in the view without sitting down at a table.

Posted by
15041 posts

Food in Italy is considerably cheaper than France or North America, so no need to stress about it. Just stay away of those side walk cafes in the major piazzas, like Piazza Signoria in Florence or Piazza San Marco in Venice and you will be fine. Just ask locally for a TRATTORIA PER MANGIARE BENE E SPENDERE POCO (trattoria to eat well and spend little). Ask Italian kids of college age, they know where the cheap places are and kids that age are likely to speak English.

Posted by
26829 posts

It's very helpful to be traveling as part of a pair. You and your husband can order separate pastas or main courses and share a vegetable side dish. As a solo traveler, I found myself straining to finish a two-course meal.

It's nearly always cheaper to buy a pastry or gelato at a separate shop rather than having dessert in a restaurant.

Always try to wander a bit off the well-trodden tourist path when searching for a restaurant. If you have the opportunity to ask an Italian for a recommendation, you'll probably get a good suggestion; Italians are very, very serious about food.

Pizza made to order (as opposed to pre-baked by-the-slice stuff sold in bakeries) is nearly always excellent. It makes a nice, reasonably light meal, or a more complete meal if you add a shared salad or other vegetable dish. Pizza often seems about the least expensive cooked-to-order option.

Posted by
1507 posts

Two meals (one of them being breakfast) and a snack is an excellent advice - my stomach can survive an occasional hotel breakfast plus two full restaurant meals in a single day, but not a long string of days eating outside three times. Restaurant cooking is heavier that usual home cooking and I run out of stomach before running out of money.

There are two solutions: first, rent an apartment and cook yourself your meals. Going to supermarkets and grocery stores and studying how things are different from home is a tourist visit in itself. - But this works better for longer stays, say one week or more. Second, supermarkets have often take out dishes - you can eat them as a picnic or in your hotel room. Do not forget that they sell also plenty of fruit that is often the better snack.

Posted by
11247 posts

In tourist areas, like St. Mark's Square in Venice, it is cheaper by far to just order your food from a take out type eating establishment and sit on a bench outside rather than sitting at a table.

Bad advice above, I'm afraid. San Marco is a no-picnic area, except at the Giarginetti Reali. (See Rick's book.)

Muerren is very expensive. We took to buying wine, salume and cheese and having a little antipasto in our room, then having only a main course out at night.

Panini can be had in any bar for 3 or 4 Euros (sometimes less) and are a bargain for lunch in any Italian city. Share courses as we do all the time. One antipasto, one primo, two secondi is more than enough. There are some good places for dinner that do not cost a fortune. It requires you to research, get away from the main squares, and look for where the locals go.

Venice: Bottega ai Promessi Sposi, Nono Risorto, Trattoria Bar Pontini are all reasonable. Make reservations! Showing up without them guarantees rejection or a long wait.

Posted by
5697 posts

In your planning, pay attention to the "included" breakfast -- in England, Germany and Austria, it can hold you through the whole day, but a Italian or French coffee-plus-croissant "continental" breakfast doesn't get me much past 11. Grocery stores can be your best friends. Plan ahead so you have something available when hunger hits rather than just finding what's nearest.
In Firenze, check out the Rick-recommended Self Service Leonardo near the Duomo.

Posted by
11613 posts

Hotel breakfasts in Italy are often buffet-style, with lots of choices (fresh fruit, yogurt, cereal, juice, breads, pastries, cold meats and cheeses, butter, jams). You could look at a booking site for photos of the hotels you are considering, if they have a nice buffet, there will probably be a photo of it.

I have a main meal at lunch and a very light dinner (sometimes just a yogurt or fruit).

Many supermarkets will prepare sandwiches to order, or you can choose from a selection of prepared foods. Tavola calda (hot table) are good for a meal you can either take away or eat onsite.

Posted by
2393 posts

My husband & I got in the habit of ordering 1 appy or salad and 1 entree and splitting - was too much food if we each ordered a meal and we really couldn't take the leftovers.

No splitting on the gelato! 😋

Posted by
105 posts

We saved lots of money by packing our own lunch (we stayed in apartments rented mainly through Airbnb). We would freeze a couple of water bottles and pack them with our lunch to keep it cool. By lunch time, we also had ice water to drink.

Posted by
1929 posts

I can only speak for Firenze, although we did visit Lucerne, Switzerland on our last trip and it was pricey as heck but also quite beautiful.

I can safely say that you can eat well in Florence for 50 Euro a day total for the two of you, and that doesn't include a hotel breakfast. If you went that route, you're probably paying for it through the hotel cost, but why would you want to eat eggs & sausage in such a great eating town?

The Conad grocery store is a treasure trove of provisions if you can rent an apartment or have a hotel room with a fridge. Cheap American coffee, milk, fruit, made-to-order refrigerated dishes, all very reasonable. Then there's the Mercato Centrale. Stay downstairs in the 'real' market instead of the Mario Batali-inspired Eataly upstairs area. Nerbone beef stand has great boiled beef with pesto sauce on a crusty roll for not more than 3 Euro. All kinds of deli counters with the best prosciutto and salamis around. Fantastic cheese and honey.

Restaurant-wise, stay away from tourist traps. Grab a panini from a street stand or find a awesome restaurant like Ciro & Sons on via Giglio. Pizzas are about 6 Euro, pastas usually right around 10 Euro. If you eat one meal a day out and cobble the rest together, you can for sure stay under 50 Euro a day!

Enjoy your planning!

Posted by
3057 posts

You cannot get take out to eat is St. marksnornother main squares in Venice. It is against the law. It is an anti-litter regulation. And be careful where you sit even if you are not snacking. Do not block bridges or steps. And if you find a bench, check the tree above for roosting pigeons. You have been warned.

Posted by
549 posts

In Venice, seek out and eat lunch at Bacareto Da Lele. Details are on Trip Advisor.
Cynthia

Posted by
7448 posts

My advice may contradict some of the above, but here goes...

I am not a big breakfast person, but I never pay extra for a Hotel breakfast, pick a hotel based on room price, if it includes breakfast, fine, if not, all I am missing is a rather bland and basic start to the day. For a few euro I can get a cafe and pastry in a nice setting to start my day.

Grocery stores and shops are good for supplements. A nice block of cheese, some wine, cookies and sweets, bread, olives, some cured meats. Use for a snack, sometimes a meal.

Lots of options for "street food". Pizza, porchetta sandwiches, tripe sandwiches, varies by area, but for a lunch here and there or an evening meal after a big lunch, it hits the spot.

But my best advice is that the food in Italy is one of the best investments, or if you prefer, a splurge, you can make. Certainly avoid the main squares and touristry places. Seek out those off the main ways, Family owned if possible. You are under no obligation to order an antipasti, a primi, a secondi and a contorno per person. My wife and I typically get a carafe of wine for a few euro, one antipasti, then each get a Pasta or a Meat/fish dish. I strongly suggest getting a Contorno, lots of options of fresh vegetables and other items for only a few euro. If we are not too full, then we might consider dessert, but a walk and a gelato later does as well.

In the end, you can eat much better in Italy for the same amount than in the US. Just the cost of wine (a few euro vs $20 plus) helps, but the quality of food is the main factor.

If you like food, make extra budget and enjoy.

Posted by
7123 posts

When you're in Siena, stop in at the Consorzio Agrario Di Siena - a short walking distance from the Campo. They have wonderfully fresh pizza squares sold by weight. Take a number like you're at a bakery, point to what looks good (know how to say 1 or 2 in Italian), and pay. The pizza was so good that we ate it both days for lunch, sitting at Piazza Salimbeni. I think lunch for the two of us was about 5-6 Euro with a couple of bottles of water.

Overall, we love the Italian breakfasts in the hotel, and usually have a light lunch - typically something we pick up in a grocery store. Then we enjoy eating late in the evening with the locals. Don't miss out on the animated ambience by eating at tourist locations or eating too early. And in general, you will save money by walking further away from tourist areas.

Posted by
47 posts

Thank you all for these great tips. I really appreciate everyone in the Rick Steves community who take the time to share their experiences and advice for first time Italy travelers like myself !

Posted by
824 posts

My best advice for saving money while dinning:

In Venice, wander as far away from the main tourist routes as possible. The further away you get from the Train Station to St Marc's Square corridor, the better and cheaper the food gets. Try heading towards the university district - that's where the best and cheapest food is. Also, in "local's" restaurants, house or table wine is usually sold/served by the 1/4, 1/2 and full liter carafe. If you only see wine by the glass (and more than 3-4 euro) or bottle, it's a sign that you're in a tourist restaurant and should probably move on.

In Florence, head to the south side of the river for the best food. Although, I've had some pretty good and reasonably priced meals a few blocks north of the Duomo. You can also hit the Mercado (upstairs) for some good eats.

Panini and Pizzeria shops, as long as their away from the tourist drag and closer to the 'blue collar' sections of town, are also a very good way to eat well and save money during the noon hour meal. I've had really good Panini and a glass of wine for 4-5 euro.

Posted by
29 posts

Murren is super expensive. Our hotel provided breakfast (cheese, bread, etc) and we would eat as much as we could and then take bread and cheese for lunch. There is a little grocery store in Murren the Co-op), where I would recommend buying additonal food/drinks and we would buy meat there for our lunch. The co-op is also a great place to stock up on wine/beer. The co-op brand chocloate is actually amazing and is super affordable. It was our favorite swiss chocolate on our entire trip. We generally would only eat at restuarants for dinner and they can be really expensive compared to other places.

Have a great trip.

Tips from personal experience
Florence - as mentioned above - Leonardo's cafeteria style is our family go-to budget meal. It is located UPSTAIRS. Can be easy to walk past. The food is not exceptional. However, we still like it. Convenient location, cheap, friendly, free pitcher of cold water, clean place with a/c and bathroom. Plain decor. CASH only.
Siena - we liked Trattoria de PAPE a lot. Not cheap, but also not expensive. The prosciutto and melon is great, followed by a pasta dish. My husband loved the rustic bean and sausage dish. Located behind the city hall/tower building. Face the tower building, take the road to your right that runs alongside the building. Walk a short distance down it and notice the ramp on your left. Go down the ramp. Trattoria PAPE is on the right hand side of the lot. You will see a "flea market." Don't let the location discourage you.
Venice - there are small grocery stores (Billa) and you can eat in your hotel room. Also, we found the restaurants in San Polo / Dorsoduro areas to be better value. I really liked Impronta cafe for a lovely meal (see tripadvisor for info.). Friendly staff. You can order a single, simple dish like a pasta or platter of tomato/ basil/cheese wedges and a glass of wine at a much more reasonable price. Try to avoid St. Mark's square completely for food.
Enjoy! Try Wild Boar sauce on pasta in Florence or Siena (cinghale). I took a chance and really enjoyed cinghale! I miss it. Can't get it where I live.

Posted by
48 posts

Breakfast at the hotel, and also grab a piece of fresh fruit from there to eat for lunch.
Picnic with that and something from a shop like local chips. I even made a meal of ice cream once. I love to check out local markets for what they have. Then a big dinner. Nothing fancy.

Posted by
5 posts

Travelling solo I order half portions and I'm charge accordingly. I usually find very good local food at cafeterias in universities and strike up conversations with students and professors. In hotels and hostels that offer a buffet breakfast I prepare a great sandwich for lunch.
By the way, in Italy is called "panino" what in the US is called "panini."
Have a wonderful journey!

Posted by
11613 posts

Sorry, but it is not cool to take lunch from the breakfast buffet. Just sayin'.

Posted by
616 posts

Hi,
If you enjoy cooking, taking an apartment might be a good solution especially in cities where hotels are expensive.
Going to market will give you the opportunity to ask vendors or native housewives how they prepare this or that vegetable.
Another way is to eat on the markets, sometimes you even get hot plates for 4-5 euros, San Ambroggio market in Florence is really nice.
Wine is rather expensive in restaurants in Italy due to taxation.
Buy a bottle of wine for 4-6 euros with a little cheese and ham, mozzarella di buffala, and eat in in the comfort of your room or on long train rides or in the sun on a bench on a square.

Go to a trattoria rather than a ristorante o even more expensive a ristorantino, and rather at lunch time when they offer 5-10 euros menus, coffee and water included, sometimes a glass of wine or 1/2 liter of water.
Sandwiches (panini) are usually
good in Italy and not very expensive but smaller than what I can imagine they are in the US. Their price is around 2-4 euros.
Pasta is 5-7 euros
Meat plate: 8-16 euros ( except if you want a Fiorentina T-bone steak which I think you should order once, if you can)
Desert 3-5 euros
Ice cream: 2 euros.
Fish is cheap near the Coast, expensive elsewhere.

Posted by
11247 posts

Sorry, but it is not cool to take lunch from the breakfast buffet. Just sayin'.

You beat me to it, Zoe. Not cool at all.

Posted by
104 posts

While picnic is good occasionally, you HAVE to experience real Italian food. Have a big meal mid day, on the later side trying all the wonderful food available. However depending on how big the city us, many restaurants close by 3 until 6 or 7pm. Then in the evening go for a glass of wine/drink and have "apertivo" or chichetti (which is free finger food that is served is bars with your drink - but you have to order/pay for the drink)....some bars will bring you (or you can self serve in some) plates of different food. In Spain some call it Tapas. If you are a big dinner eater this wouldn't work. While it's important to not blow all your money.....but try the different regional foods....its an important part of Italian life.

Posted by
15678 posts

Sorry, but it is not cool to take lunch from the breakfast buffet.
Just sayin'.

Ditto to Zoe: not cool.

We eat a 'meal' twice a day on vacation: fill up on breakfast in the morning (included in hotel tariff or purchased from markets), a snack in the afternoon, and then one sit-down meal in the late afternoon/early evening. We just do not need 3 full meals a day but that may not work for everyone. Our timing may also not be to everyone's preference but heck, we get lots of good seats showing up at the opening hour without reservations! Then we have a lovely walkabout when everyone else is at dinner. :O)

The markets are great for picking up all breakfast/lunch/picnic items but yep, you don't want to picnic in public just anywhere. Besides being banned in some places, crumbs and trash bring in pigeons, and pigeons are really detrimental to historic architecture. Parks are always a good bet.

You don't need to order all of the courses available at a restaurant. We may split an antipasti and have a primi apiece, or primi and dolce (dessert) apiece. It all depends on how much/how often you're used to eating.

Posted by
15 posts

If your room has a refrigerator, buy some milk and a box of cereal and eat breakfast in the room. You'll save time as well as money. When we were in London our room had a small kitchen so we didn't even have to worry about bowls and utensils.

Posted by
709 posts

I've often wondered what some small hotels think when guests pay 10 euros for the breakfast buffet but consume say 15 euros worth....somewhat jokingly: do they wish the guest would stop at their fair amount and instead grab a baguette to go?

Posted by
15560 posts

consume say 15 euros worth

C'mon. The cost of the food pretty minimal for the hotel. I can't imagine how much you'd have to eat to get through €15 worth of food at breakfast. And even that averages out, since a lot of people don't eat all that much.

Posted by
709 posts

Chani, c'mon, so literal. Really? I wasn't citing actual costs but a hypothetical example. And...you've indirectly supported my point by indicating the low cost of the food and that many are light eaters. I doubt that a provider minds if someone takes an apple for later. Let me use the currency I am most familiar with and indicate the exact venue. Change it to $9.99 at the Rancho Bernardo Inn in San Diego and imagine that I have sat down and eaten a small amount of scrambled eggs and some fruit. I know by experience that many have consumed much more than me. How offensive is a takeaway banana considering that the light eaters subsidize the heartier consumers? I must remember to turn on the sarcasm font - sorry! This is a tough, unfriendly audience.

Posted by
8293 posts

Taking an apple or a banana from the breakfast buffet for a snack later, though not cool, is not a major sin. On the other hand, I have seen some fellow bus tour people approach the breakfast buffet with plastic bag in hand which they fill up with pastries, hard boiled eggs, cheese and anything individually wrapped that will travel. It's quite a sight and must infuriate the hotel keeper.

Posted by
285 posts

I was shocked how inexpensive food was in Italy, and they give you a TON. Lunch was rarely over $10 Euro, and dinner could be quite reasonable especially splitting an app and main course.

Posted by
7123 posts

Norma, ugh, that must be disgusting to watch! The breakfast food is not free, and that behavior will drive hotel owners to stop offering breakfast or cutting way back on options. And, it's probably caused the late sleepers to end up with next to nothing to eat for breakfast. We enjoy eating breakfast in the hotels, talking to the hotel staff and meeting other travelers - would hate to have that disappear.

Posted by
17628 posts

Interesting. Moral relativism. A small theft is okay, but a larger theft isn't. But who defines the breaking point between the two? Then, if they didn't specifically say you cant take something with you, is it still theft? You know that is probably the rule, but they weren't specific so you are off the hook? Or maybe it only counts if you can draw a direct correlation between your action and the impact on those that follow you? Besides an "???" is cheap, its not that big a deal. Because I can easily afford it, it must not count. But wait, if I can easily afford it why am I taking it?

Ignore me. I am just spoofing.

Posted by
15678 posts

On the other hand, I have seen some fellow bus tour people approach
the breakfast buffet with plastic bag in hand which they fill up with
pastries, hard boiled eggs, cheese and anything individually wrapped
that will travel.

That habit is what I was referencing. We once watched a multi-family group do that at a hotel in Sorrento - pretty much cleaned out anything that would go in their bags - for 'take-away' lunches at Pompeii. I don't have a big issue with tucking away a couple of small, wrapped biscuits or one item you chose but ended up too full to eat (it's been handled) but making two meals of the breakfast buffet is over the top?

Posted by
68 posts

Buying food at grocery stores is a cheap way to eat and it can also be an interesting cultural experience.

A few years ago I stayed at a hostel in Vienna that had a microwave. I went to a local grocery store and bought some frozen dinners. The frozen dinners I found at the grocery store weren't the kind that I usually find in grocery stores at home like salisbury steak or turkey dinner. Instead, I found frozen dinners for schnitzel, bratwurst, etc. I wasn't sure what to expect but they were actually fairly good.

Posted by
11613 posts

James: Since Norma put taking food for later into the "sin" category, note that many religious traditions have a distinction between "minor" sins and "grave" sins. And thanks for the disclaimer, me, too.

Posted by
3514 posts

I found on my last trip through Italy that the highway gas stations that have restaurants usually have very good food at reasonable prices. It is not sit-down-white-table-cloth dining, more of a cafeteria style, but good variety. When we stopped at those places, I could usually get a very filling home style Italian meal with wine for under €10.

Many of the hotels I stayed at had excellent breakfast buffets as well containing a wide variety of foods making it easy to find enough you liked to eat. And nearly every one had a sign (in multiple languages) stating either that removing food from the breakfast area was not permitted or, in a couple places, if you removed food you would be charged an extra €20. So I think they notice when food is taken for later.

Posted by
12172 posts

A general comment, not unique to me, is picnics are the best cheap eating alternative. Grocery stores almost always have a section that sells meat and cheese. They'll slice it for you. I find 100 grams of each is more than enough to make two really generous sandwiches. Somewhere within 20 feet will be a section that sells bread. You can buy two rolls to make your sandwiches. Walk the aisles and you'll find small portion containers of olives, nuts, chocolate, condiments, etc. to round out your meal. Last, but not least, pick the beverage of your choice. Whether it's wine, beer, juice or a soft drink, it's very affordable at a grocery store. Bring a day pack to use as your grocery bag (they normally charge a little to buy one of their bags). I also carry my standard picnic gear in my day pack - a swiss army knife and a plastic fork. If you like yogurt add a plastic spoon.

The other recommendation applies especially to Italy. I've found whenever I'm famished and stop at the first place I see (in or near a tourist attraction) the food is horrible - like microwaved frozen food horrible. When I take a little time to walk a few blocks from the tourists, the quality goes up exponentially. Better yet, ask a local for a recommendation. I always add "nothing fancy" so they know I'm not looking for an expensive meal. In Italy, the price of your dinner will be the same whether you had the best meal of your life (at a family style restaurant) or the worst (in a tourist zone) - they seem to have going rates that everyone charges.

Posted by
64 posts

Our approach, on most days, is to have two meals & a snack somewhere along the way. We typically have a good breakfast (usually included in our hotel rate), then often a late afternoon or early evening meal that covers both lunch & dinner, depending on our schedule. Some of our most memorable meals in Europe were not expensive. Rick Steves books offer excellent suggestions for restaurants in various price categories. Some of our favorite eateries have been found there. For us, eating is an important part of any travel experience, so we enjoy partaking of local specialties. Regional chain restaurants (including family friendly ones) should not be overlooked, as this is a great way to be among the locals. Bon Voyage!