For sharing: your must eat food in Italy

I thought this would be fun for us as a discussion! It will bring back some memories for those who have visited and give good ideas for those who have not yet visited.

What food do you always have to sample when you make your trip to Italy? Or, what food do really want to sample when you make your trip to Italy?

I'll go first:

Florence - I MUST get a bowl of ribolitta, that amazing Tuscan bean and kale soup. Sure, I make it at home, but there is something about eating ribolitta in the place where it was born. A porchetta sandwich at Nerbonne in the Mercato Centrale.

Siena - gotta be panforte, that yummy dense Italian fruitcake that is made in Siena. I actually just finished off a panforte that I picked up last week in an Italian deli.

Rome - well, if it's Thursday, I MUST have gnocchi in gorgonzola sauce. Otherwise, I've got to get a couple pieces of pizza from Bonci's Pizzarium. AND, I will always stop off twice at Tazza d' Oro - once in the morning for espresso and a cornetti and later for a caffe granita WITH whip!!!

Vernazza - a Sicilian pastry from the brothers up at Il Pirata!! keep walking up the hill from the train station to the very end of the walkway and you'll find it.

Anywhere - if the mood strikes, some artisanal gelato in an unusual flavor that calls to me - forget boring chocolate, bring me pear & ricotta, rice, lemon & basil, yummy...

What is your delight?

Siena~ Vin Santo

Rome~ The restaurant Is Buco. A very small restaurant not too far from Santa Maria Soprano Minerva.

Gelato any place we can get it...usually ends up being "lunch"!

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Tuscany - Farro and bean soup. DH had some in Lucca on our trip in June. When we later visited Bologna, we found a mix (basically just some of the special dry beans and some herbs, to which you add the fresh veggies) at the Eataly shop, which I got around to making a few weeks ago. Now I have to figure out where to get these beans in the U.S. That soup is so good.

So many! How to choose...??

Rome:

-- Carciofo alla giudia (Fried artichokes, Roman-Jewish style), when in season; excellent at either Piperno or Giggetto

-- A big plate of Cacio e pepe (but Rome has so many good pastas...)

-- Saltimbocca (I'm looking at you, Armando al Pantheon!)

Tuscany region:

-- Pappardelle pasta with a cinghiale (wild boar) ragu

-- Sauteed greens with vinegar and red pepper

-- Crostini with chicken liver pate

Naples area:

-- Neapolitan pizza (one of life's perfect combinations)

-- Sfogliatella, fresh and warm

Anywhere in Italy: Coffee (addicted to espresso, best is in Naples); gelato

A fish and seafood fritura.

One of the most memorable meals we have ever had was in Naples. We started with a big bowl of clams in a simple white wine and garlic broth. The crusty bread with olive oil was the perfect accompaniment. Next, we were served the most beautiful bowl of seafood risotto. Oh. My. God. It was heaven. The perfect consistency with seafood so fresh it just tasted of the ocean. Finally, you can't go to Naples without having pizza. Hands down, the best pizza we've ever had. Again, simple, quality ingredients are key. Amazing!

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So many! How to choose...??

 

Rome:

-- Carciofo alla giudia (Fried artichokes, Roman-Jewish style), when in season; excellent at either Piperno or Giggetto

-- A big plate of Cacio e pepe (but Rome has so many good pastas...)

-- Saltimbocca (I'm looking at you, Armando al Pantheon!)

 

Tuscany region:

-- Pappardelle pasta with a cinghiale (wild boar) ragu

-- Sauteed greens with vinegar and red pepper

-- Crostini with chicken liver pate

 

Naples area:

-- Neapolitan pizza (one of life's perfect combinations)

-- Sfogliatella, fresh and warm

 

Anywhere in Italy: Coffee (addicted to espresso, best is in Naples); gelato

Oh yes, Armando... I'll take anything from there - I did forget the daughter's excellent Roman Torta from there. I've had their artichokes poached in olive oil also - yummy. I am glad I convinced you to try Armando!

I eat sautéed greens everywhere in Italy! Chicory is my favorite. At Sostanza in Florence, it did indeed come with red pepper.

In Tuscany, if you are a meat-eater, I guess one would have to try the bistecca Fiorentina at least once. Not my thing. But, I did go to Osteria Acuqacheta in Montepulciano with friends. They tucked into a huge slab of beef and were quite happy. I was happy with other stuff on the menu ;-)

I know I could go on and on, but...

One of the most memorable meals we have ever had was in Naples. We started with a big bowl of clams in a simple white wine and garlic broth. The crusty bread with olive oil was the perfect accompaniment. Next, we were served the most beautiful bowl of seafood risotto. Oh. My. God. It was heaven. The perfect consistency with seafood so fresh it just tasted of the ocean. Finally, you can't go to Naples without having pizza. Hands down, the best pizza we've ever had. Again, simple, quality ingredients are key. Amazing!

 

 

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Totally agree best meal I had in Italy was in Naples , great Pizza and everything else, we went to hear Sophia Loren talk about her life earlier this year, and we got a chance to ask her what her favorite food was, she responded that she was from Naples so Pizza was her choice. I would not want to disagree with her

Taormina (often from Messina) - Cannoli

Hank

Limoncello every evening!:D

Taormina (often from Messina) - Cannoli

 

Hank

Oh yeah, love that sheep's milk ricotta.

Vernazza: pasta with fresh pesto.

Oh yeah, love that sheep's milk ricotta.

 

Vernazza: pasta with fresh pesto.

When in Vernazza, get that pesto with trofie as the pasta - it's "native" to the Ligurian region. Had mine at Vulnetia - the owner of the apartment I stated at was the daughter in the family who owns the restaurant. Right on the harbor front. They make a kick-ass seafood risotto, too!!!

GReat recommendations, great topic - thanks for starting this and everyone's sharing their finds.

Look for sciacciata in bread shops (or pasticcerias that carry bread and cakes) to taste this sinfully delicious delight. One of the best things I ever tasted in Italy - yes, it has lots of butter but we do a LOT of walking in Italy. I didn't worry too much ;)

GReat recommendations, great topic - thanks for starting this and everyone's sharing their finds.

 

Look for sciacciata in bread shops (or pasticcerias that carry bread and cakes) to taste this sinfully delicious delight. One of the best things I ever tasted in Italy - yes, it has lots of butter but we do a LOT of walking in Italy. I didn't worry too much ;)

I enjoy talking about food. I'm not a gourmet nor a foodie, but I love trying local food in local restaurants. I've noticed that, once fall comes, the chatter on this forum dies off because no one is actively cruising. I hope we can do more threads like this in the "off season" to keep us active, bring back memories, and have fodder for new trips!

I enjoy talking about food. I'm not a gourmet nor a foodie, but I love trying local food in local restaurants. I've noticed that, once fall comes, the chatter on this forum dies off because no one is actively cruising. I hope we can do more threads like this in the "off season" to keep us active, bring back memories, and have fodder for new trips!

Thank you for starting the thread! It's a nice diversion as the days get colder and darker, to think of happy meals in Italy and hear about other travelers favorite finds. It also has me wondering if I can squeeze in a cruise or trip to Europe into the time and money budget next year. I'll be looking for some bargain fares, that can perhaps justify a quickie trip.:)

Well, if we're going to get into full-on food cravings, let's talk bread.

In Rome, I love the pizza bianca -- not really like typical Roman pizza but sort of a delicious cheesy garlicky treat. Yum!

In the Naples/Amalfi Coast area, I fell in love with the delicious bread in a local bakery/salumeria. Sort of a braided round loaf studded with delicious crispy browned pieces of pancetta.

Some people really like the Tuscan bread made without salt but I have to admit to not being that fond of it.

What I do like, though is the traditional focaccia with olive oil, salt, and rosemary. Some people say the recipe for this dates back to the bread made in ancient Rome or even to the Etruscans.

Thank you for starting the thread! It's a nice diversion as the days get colder and darker, to think of happy meals in Italy and hear about other travelers favorite finds. It also has me wondering if I can squeeze in a cruise or trip to Europe into the time and money budget next year. I'll be looking for some bargain fares, that can perhaps justify a quickie trip.:)

I wouldn't attempt to do a quickie trip do to cost and time to fly over there and back, I would not want to do less than 10 days , I would rather save a little more to get a longer trip later.

Well, if we're going to get into full-on food cravings, let's talk bread.

 

In Rome, I love the pizza bianca -- not really like typical Roman pizza but sort of a delicious cheesy garlicky treat. Yum!

 

In the Naples/Amalfi Coast area, I fell in love with the delicious bread in a local bakery/salumeria. Sort of a braided round loaf studded with delicious crispy browned pieces of pancetta.

 

Some people really like the Tuscan bread made without salt but I have to admit to not being that fond of it.

 

What I do like, though is the traditional focaccia with olive oil, salt, and rosemary. Some people say the recipe for this dates back to the bread made in ancient Rome or even to the Etruscans.

I love my carbs!!!! Funny - I like Tuscan bread. I even buy it here at home from a local bakery. I make ribolita at home and always buy a loaf of Tuscan White for the bread in the soup. I am known to pop into a bakery and buy and loaf of whatever calls to me and have it as my afternoon snack for a few days. My ex-nana-in-law from the suburbs of Naples gave me my first taste of that focaccia. It was a staple on her table when we'd to there for Sunday dinners. I never knew something so simple could be sooooo good. (she also hand-made cavatelli, which is still my all-time favorite but cannot find anywhere fresh. Kind of like gnocchi, but made from pasta dough instead of with the mix of potato and flour - heavenly pillows of dough).

OK. If you ever get to do an evening in Florence: The butter chicken at Sostanza is TO DIE FOR. A chicken breast grilled, then simmered and brought to the table in a cast iron skillet filled with BUTTER. Gosh, I thought I'd never make it through it, but I did eat it all. And,having some really good tuscan bread to sop up that butter was icing on the cake ;) You have to have a reservation for the place - get your hotel concierge to make it for you weeks in advance.

Well, if we're going to get into full-on food cravings, let's talk bread.

 

In Rome, I love the pizza bianca -- not really like typical Roman pizza but sort of a delicious cheesy garlicky treat. Yum!

 

In the Naples/Amalfi Coast area, I fell in love with the delicious bread in a local bakery/salumeria. Sort of a braided round loaf studded with delicious crispy browned pieces of pancetta.

 

Some people really like the Tuscan bread made without salt but I have to admit to not being that fond of it.

 

What I do like, though is the traditional focaccia with olive oil, salt, and rosemary. Some people say the recipe for this dates back to the bread made in ancient Rome or even to the Etruscans.

That's interesting! I love focaccia too, but the part I like best is the chewy fluffiness of it. We went to an ancient Roman dinner a few years ago, and were served spelt bread, since they didn't have wheat in ancient Rome. It was tasty, and definitely chewy, but fluffy it was not! Focaccia made from spelt flour must have been quite a different experience.

Focaccia is originating from Genova.

Vin Santo is originating from San Gimignano.

A nice snack in the Tuscany area is a Porchetta sandwich (young board rolled up with herbs - cold cut).

Gelato... the Italian website Dissapore lists the best 100 gelaterias in Italy each year - so check this for 2016. It´s in Italian but you still can read the addresses ;-) - Armonia e Poesia right in Civitavecchia behind the train station (maybe 10-15 min walking). Or my favorite for 23 year - Sergio Dondoli and his Gelateria di Piazza in San Gimignano.

Mozzarella di Buffola - especially in a Caprese sandwich.

There´s great food all over Italy and lots of regional specialties. Not to forget about the wine...

steamboats

I wouldn't attempt to do a quickie trip do to cost and time to fly over there and back, I would not want to do less than 10 days , I would rather save a little more to get a longer trip later.

When necessary, it can work with the right city. We've done four nighters (not including the flight over) four times - London, Paris, Amsterdam and Moscow. The first two were revisits of longer previous visits. Flights have to be a real deal though.

We are working on two far away long bucket list trips for 2017 - so it would have to be a short, screaming deal trip to shove in between. Second trip was supposed to be a Feb 2018, until I realized that we'd miss watching the winter olympics, so I'm aiming for December 2017. The first is definitely SE Asia this coming February...it's just so hard to stay away from Europe for a whole year.

Back on topic...that butter chicken sounds so good!

Gelato, pick a flavor any flavor

Focaccia is originating from Genova.

 

Vin Santo is originating from San Gimignano.

 

A nice snack in the Tuscany area is a Porchetta sandwich (young board rolled up with herbs - cold cut).

 

Gelato... the Italian website Dissapore lists the best 100 gelaterias in Italy each year - so check this for 2016. It´s in Italian but you still can read the addresses ;-) - Armonia e Poesia right in Civitavecchia behind the train station (maybe 10-15 min walking). Or my favorite for 23 year - Sergio Dondoli and his Gelateria di Piazza in San Gimignano.

 

Mozzarella di Buffola - especially in a Caprese sandwich.

 

There´s great food all over Italy and lots of regional specialties. Not to forget about the wine...

 

steamboats

Stop! I'm dying here with all this goodness!!! I didn't know what I would start!

Porchetta - love that stuff. Fortunately, it's pork, so I'll eat it. A little sandwich at Nerbonne in the Mercato Centrale in Florence is a good lunch for me. I also had some really good porchetta from the little Il Negozietto deli in Orvieto.

One of my favorite appetizers of all time was a plate of mozz with a handful of semi-dried tomatoes at Roscioli in Rome. Since I don't eat a lot of meat (outside of pork and charcuterie), Caprese sandwiches are a mainstay of my Italian diet. If I go to France, trade out the mozz for brie!

My ex-nanna-in-law called her stuff focaccia, but it was more flat, not like the "puffy" focaccia in Liguria. In Vernazza (pre-landslide), my holiday apartment was across the walkway from a bakery that had good focaccia. We'd grab some focaccia, go next door to the deli and pick up some salumi, cheeses, tomato and some olives and have that as our dinner a few times.

Wine - that needs to be an entirely different and new thread!!!!

Focaccia is originating from Genova.

 

Vin Santo is originating from San Gimignano.

 

A nice snack in the Tuscany area is a Porchetta sandwich (young board rolled up with herbs - cold cut).

 

Gelato... the Italian website Dissapore lists the best 100 gelaterias in Italy each year - so check this for 2016. It´s in Italian but you still can read the addresses ;-) - Armonia e Poesia right in Civitavecchia behind the train station (maybe 10-15 min walking). Or my favorite for 23 year - Sergio Dondoli and his Gelateria di Piazza in San Gimignano.

 

Mozzarella di Buffola - especially in a Caprese sandwich.

 

There´s great food all over Italy and lots of regional specialties. Not to forget about the wine...

 

steamboats

Loved that Gelato list! :D I can read Italian (only had to look up ginger & few other ingredients in an Orient Spice flavor) but no worries if you cannot - google translates the page and does an OK job plus the addresses are there regardless. Translator apps are good for ingredients if you only want to know what "uva passa" are. (raisins)

Not embarrassed to admit I have previously gone on fine chocolate hunts in France, Germany, Switzerland (OK anywhere, really) and so this list is worth consulting or adding/forwarding to friends/family etc en route to Italy! I had Gelato in Modena that was OUTSTANDING but it wasn't on the list though there is a place in Modena on this list. Seems Genoa - aside from Roma - is a place to go to for Gelato - a lot of places there, Torino too.

Dolce-turismo anyone? To be followed by lots and lots of hiking ;)

And yes, these weeks/months are slow now but I can also share that the Asia/Austraila/NZ cruise boards are "heating up" as it's almost summer Down Under and it's LESS HOT in Asia now. If you're curious or hadn't ever thought about going there before or just can't be without destination themed cruise chat before, check out those boards too! But yes, these threads are fun and since they involve port related themes they are fun and very very welcome here of course!

(There's even a gelateria on the list with one outlet here in the US I can get to!!! :D )

Enjoy!

 

And yes, these weeks/months are slow now but I can also share that the Asia/Austraila/NZ cruise boards are "heating up" as it's almost summer Down Under and it's LESS HOT in Asia now. If you're curious or hadn't ever thought about going there before or just can't be without destination themed cruise chat before, check out those boards too! But yes, these threads are fun and since they involve port related themes they are fun and very very welcome here of course!

 

Enjoy!

But.....there are no Roman ruins in Asia, Australia or New Zealand! :p (Other than that deficiency, they are quite nice.)