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Published: January 14th 2018
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Coming to Italy, I was especially excited about the food. I love food, all kinds of foods. Healthy foods, unhealthy foods. Sweet, salty, spicy (but not too spicy). My love for food is the reason I began studying dietetics, which is the reason I am on this trip. So thanks to my love for food for bringing me to Italy where I get to enjoy some of the best food around!
Though the food is different here, I was obviously familiar with most of the staple dishes available in Italy. I knew they were famous for pizza, pasta, and paninis. Within the past 9 days I think I have had pizza every day at least once (one day I had it for every single meal). I have had numerous sandwiches with either ham or salami on it, lots of pasta with lots of cheese, and of course gelato. I have also had a lot of crepes and croissants, mainly because I’m not sure what the other pastries displayed in the restaurants are, but I am working on it. You can’t go anywhere in the city without passing a restaurant that is serving at least one of these items mentioned.
I have tried some things I did not know were popular here. The welcome dinner included delicious cheese and honey (a combination I will continue to use back in America), two different types of pastas, mini desserts, and a crostini with brown paste on it. This brown paste was chicken liver, which I will not be ordering again, but I am glad I tasted one of their staple appetizers! I have seen this offered at most restaurants and appertivos since then.
An appertivo is an appertizer buffet that includes a drink (including alcoholic beverages) for only 10 euro, and no table charge (like a tip, but a set charge not based on the price of your meal). I really like this Italian custom. It is a good deal that gives people the opportunity to try multiple popular Italian appetizers and dishes in smaller portions.
I currently have a list of foods I still need to try while here, which includes; lasagna, the sandwiches from the shop below our apartment (it’s world famous and causes crowds outside our door), espresso, and Italian soups (I want to compare them to the ones at Olive Garden). I am not allowing myself
to order the same dishes until I eat this list of foods, even though it has been hard because I have found some really good dishes.
So far, my favorite meal was a pear and ricotta cheese stuffed ravioli in a butter and sage sauce. Just typing that made me want more of it. Luckily it is just down the street, a two minute walk from my apartment, and you can get it to-go (or take away as the Italians call it). I also had an amazing margherita pizza from Gustapizza in the shape of a heart. The pizza here is generally better because of the cooking methods and fresh ingredients, but they don’t add as much cheese as we do in America, which is my favorite part.
When comparing the food to American food, they do use fresher ingredients that involves less preservatives. I have noticed this in the grocery stores as well. Some of their foods are vacuum sealed, another method of preservation, avoiding any additives.Their diets also consist of mainly carbs, lacking in fruits and vegetables. There is not a wide variety of food items offered here, so I have honestly only eaten pasta, sandwiches,
and pizza. I miss the variety of foods offered in America. And also sweet tea because I heard Americans on the street talking about it and it has haunted me since.
Not only does their food differ from America, but also their customs involving food. Like I mentioned earlier, there is a table charge, usually costing 2 euro per person at the table. This is comparable to tipping in America, except the table charge is a constant amount. Italians also eat later than us, some restaurants not opening until 7 PM. The restaurants also do not seem to hold regular hours, which we have experienced personally. There is a restaurant Hannah and I are interested in but each time we try (twice so far) it is closed, including a Thursday night.
Something that has been hard to adjust to is the fact that water is not free. We are so used to free water at restaurants, with refills, but in Italy it costs the same as a glass of wine. So obviously I have to get wine because I am getting more for my money, right? Right. But the wine here is stronger and I like the wine in America that tastes like juice. But this is also something I am getting used to and learning more about, especially during our wine tasting tour.I was able to figure out I like white wine better here, which is just another lesson learned here in Italy!
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