We tend to think of food in terms of the country they come from – Chinese food, Indian food, Italian food, etc and we think of Italian food as a whole – pasta, pizza, pesto, etc. But there’s so much more to it than that. Just like in the US, the food in each country varies throughout the regions in that country. I found this Italian food blog that has a nice overview of the Italian regions: https://www.thelazyitalian.com/how-italian-food-culture-differs-by-region/.
Our first stop in Italy was Venice. It’s no surprise that a city surrounded by water would have good seafood! Our hotel was right near the fish market.
While in Venice, we took a day trip to Burano and had lunch at Trattoria All Gatto Nero (the Black Cat) (https://www.gattonero.com). I had been there once before and loved the experience so we stopped in. We had a small lunch – we shared the Fritto Misto di Pesce (mixed fried fish – I realized while we were in Italy that “fish” is actually more like “seafood”). It was light and tasty!
Then we each had a dessert – Chris got tiramisu but they also had a different dish that I decided to try. Wow! It’s basically the creamy part of tiramisu (mixture of mascarpone cheese, eggs, and sugar) with amoretti cookies in it (cookie crumbles mixed in then some of the cookies on top). It was so good!!
We stayed at a lot of VRBO and Airbnb’s during our trip so we usually made our own breakfast, but our hotel in Venice had a really great breakfast buffet that was included with our room. In addition to meat, cheese, and fresh fruit, they also had prosecco and of course a coffee bar. Cappuccino is a morning beverage in Italy – after mid-day they would have an espresso instead to avoid slowing down digestion from the milk.
When we got to Florence, we discovered a great little bar (Caffé Sant’Ambrogio) that was a short walk from the central area in Florence. We had stopped in to have a drink and a snack and get out of the rain and ended up going back another day during our stay there! They had a great wine menu – I got a local rosé, a decent beer selection, and a great selection of these toasts. We went during aperativo time – too early for dinner (they tend to eat late) – but this was a perfect evening snack. We got to chat with several locals who came in for a drink or an espresso at the bar to start their evening.
We also learned that Florence has Wine Windows (see our Florence post for more details on that: https://chrisandheathertraveltheworld.com/florence-firenze-italy/) – I got prosecco but they had local/regional red and white options too.
And of course dessert – across the river near the Ponte Vecchio is Gino’s Bakery, where they serve up excellent cannolis. The cannoli actually originated in Sicily but you can find it all over Italy. It a shell of fried dough filled with a creamy mixture of sweetened whipped ricotta cheese then topped with various things on the ends (chocolate chips, pistachio crumbles, etc). You can also now get them filled with Nutella (my favorite), pistachio, and other fillings but the traditional is the plain ricotta filling. Chris went with the original and it did not disappoint!
Once we got to Siena, we stopped at a restaurant called Manganelli (https://www.barmanganelli.it/en/menus/) on the main square, Il Campo (we definitely paid a premium for the location/view; but it was good and we enjoyed the atmosphere sitting outside overlooking the square while we ate.
I got a Tuscan red wine (I don’t remember which one but I think it was a Chianti) and Cacio e Pepe. The Cacio e Pepe is actually a Roman dish but I hadn’t had it before and wanted to try it. It was good! I’ve seen various versions of this but found this recipe that looks like it’s the traditional recipe: https://www.recipesfromitaly.com/spaghetti-cacio-e-pepe-recipe/. By the way – if you’re ever unsure if something is the authentic Italian way to make a dish, these guys are hilarious: https://www.youtube.com/Lionfield (they have several on cacio e Pepe: https://youtu.be/rtCeRXgdjQc; https://youtu.be/ajniFzkqcQw?si=aMn4Vu1awEpNHe3w).
While in Siena, we took a cooking class. I booked it on Viator at the cooking school associated with Trattoria Fonte Giusta – https://www.scuoladicucinafontegiusta.com/en/. We did the pasta and tiramisu class and they had classes at 10:30 AM, 12:30 PM, and 5:30 PM. We decided to do the 10:30 AM class so that we’d have the food we made for lunch (all total it was about 3 hours so we didn’t want to eat a big meal that late for dinner). Turned out to be a really good decision – it was so much food! We got there for our class and ended up being the only ones in the class. So we basically got a private cooking class.
Our teacher brought us up to the classroom and we started off with a glass of prosecco! We got suited up then we made 3 types of pasta – pici (a thick, hand-rolled pasta from Tuscany, the dough is a simple mix of flour and water), spinach and ricotta ravioli, and gnocchi. We made all of the pasta from scratch but he had the ravioli filling pre-made for us.
Then we made the tiramisu …. yummy!
Once we were done with the preparation, we went down to the restaurant. Our teacher actually cooked the pasta for us (and he did the sauces).
We started off with a house red wine and an antipasto meat plate.
Then came the bruschetta (pronounced “broo-sketta”) – an Italian appetizer of grilled (or toasted) bread rubbed with garlic, then topped with a range of things – but commonly olive oil, fresh diced tomatoes, basil, etc.
At this point I was thinking this is gonna be a lot of food!
Next we got our first pasta dish – spinach and ricotta ravioli with a butter and sage sauce.
Next up was the pici paste with a traditional Tuscan tomato sauce made with aglione (giant garlic known for mild, sweet flavor and lack of pungent odor).
By the time we got to the gnocchi, I was pretty full. This was served with a Tuscan meat sauce and was so good! Thankfully they were able to box up some of the food for us so we could take it back to our place (and we had a kitchen so could reheat it later).
And last but not least – the tiramisu. Also sooo good! But I couldn’t even finish it because I was so full! The class was amazing and I am so glad we did the morning one. We finished eating around 1:30 PM and I was still full at dinnertime and didn’t even eat dinner!
After Siena, we went to Orvieto. One thing they are known for is Orvieto Classico wine. We booked a wine tasting at a small place in town so we got to try the Orvieto Classico along with a red called Russo Rubino. The tasting was paired with a platter of meats and cheese.
In Rome, we stumbled on this place called Gogo dal 1661 (https://gododal1661.shop/) with these great “pizza sandwiches” on focaccia. It had a fun, trendy vibe with outdoor seating – perfect for a sunny afternoon!
Aperol Spritz is a quintissential Italian cocktail but the Campari Spritz was another popular option (as were other Campari-based drinks like Negroni). I happen to like Campari and had to try it – definitely a winner! I got this in Rome – of course overlooking some Roman ruins at Largo di Torre Argentina.
At that same stop I decided to go with the lasagna (not a Rome specialty – actually originated in Bologna in the Emilia-Romagna region) and it was so good! Chris got a pizza with potatoes and meat – also very good!
Speaking of pizza …. we did a day trip to Pompeii which involved a train change in Naples. The birthplace of pizza. I had to try the potato one and it was really good! For those of you thinking potatoes don’t have much flavor – the potatoes we had across Europe (and in particular Germany!) were so good! Think more like Yukon Gold potatoes and not your standard russet potatoes.
While in Rome, we met up with a friend who lives there and had lunch at Ristorante le Mani in Pasta in the Trastevere neighborhood. I got the Spaghetti with Clams – so simple yet so good!
After Rome we went to Milan. We stumbled on this place called Osteria al Ventotto. I got some prosecco (because I love prosecco!) and we shared some bruschetta.
Then I had to try a Milanese specialty – Risotto alla Milanese. It’s a risotto that is saffron-infused.
And then of course some espresso after lunch!
And I can’t talk about Italian food without mentioning gelato. By the way, while “gelato” translates to “ice cream” – they are not the same! In general – gelato has less cream and more milk and also less air.
In Genoa, there are a couple of specialties – focaccia and pesto. Combine them for this amazing pizza-like dish!
We hiked Cinque Terre and stopped for a quick bite in Vernazza – calamari and fries. Good mid-hike snack – especially since we were right on the coast.
While in Genoa, we stopped in a place called Boccadesse – on the outskirts of Genoa and right on the coast. While we didn’t eat here, I had to try the House Negroni at La Stramabata. It did not disappoint! (Google translation of the description: “Infused with oranges, cinnamon-flavored with star anise, then left to mature in a wooden barrel”)
Our VRBO host had some amazing suggestions (including La Strambata) – he also left out a great local amaro to try!
In Ventimiglia, there was a great market across the street from us that had a vendor selling pastries. The mini cannolis were so good! And the small cookies were also very tasty!
Pesto … Ventimiglia is found in the Ligurian region, which is also where Genoa is. We had lunch one day at a place just downstairs from our apartment: Iari’s Bar (https://maps.app.goo.gl/ZdrBGrBuNQ5H4mAL6). I had some trofie pasta (the twisted pasta in this picture) with pesto. Wow!
And then of course we had to have some more tiramisu and espresso!
I hope you enjoyed this culinary adventure. I couldn’t possibly cover all the cuisine in Italy in this post – so you probably need to go visit and try it for yourself, 1 region at a time!
