Eating out In Italy

In Italy, having lunch or dinner means to have a lot of time to enjoy the taste of each plate. Italian are mostly famous for their pizzas and pasta, but there is more of it: some wonderful desserts, cheeses and a lot of varieties of wines.

Food in Italy is a means of spending quality time and bond with family and friends. Italian cuisine is about attention to detail that goes to making each dish just perfect. Italian food varies from region to region and are generally simple and straightforward to prepare. A few of the popular ingredients used in a lot of Italian recipes include potato, bell pepper and tomato. Cheese is considered a vital ingredient and is used in the majority Italian dishes.

BREAKFAST
In Italy, at breakfast, the Italian style start the morning. The Italian Breakfast is made of a cappuccino or coffee and milk and a sweet pastry, or simply espresso typically taken at a cafe or bar.

LUNCH
Traditionally in the countryside and small towns, lunch is the most important meal of the day, but times and habits are changing in some of the more popular tourist areas (for example, in the Chianti region of Tuscany).

Lunch usually consists of antipasto (starter) a primo piatto (pasta, rice or soup), a secondo piatto (meat or fish) with contorno (vegetable or salad), then frutta ( fresh fruit). Finish with espresso and maybe a grappa or amaro (strong digestive liqueur).
Sunday Lunch
Sunday lunch is a wonderful event in the countryside. It is traditionally a day out for the family following a visit to the local church or monument. It is a leisurely occasion where you take your time and linger over a digestivo and coffee for most of the afternoon. Many country restaurants have beautiful shady outdoor areas where you can eat and enjoy the scenery.

DINNER

Due to the custom of the Italians, many restaurants open for dinner between 7.00 and 9.30 p.m.. The dinner menu is usually quite an extensive one and similar to the important lunch menu. Pizza is many places is available only at dinner time.

Closing Day
A visit in Italy means also knowing that the restaurants in the cities, countryside and in small towns close one day a week. The closing day is Monday.The closing day is posted outside the restaurant and in some guidebooks.

Reservations
It is best to make reservations ahead of time for dinner before you go out for the day, or the day before. Arriving at a restaurant without a reservation, although it may appear to be empty, every table is reserved. Due to the long time spent on having dinner, 2-3 Hours, due to the fact that the meals are make after each order is take, the best is a reservation before.