Experiencing Food in Italy

The Italians certainly go hard when it comes to food. Eating here in Italy is a bit different than what the norm is in America. On our first night here in Rome, we went out and had a welcome dinner at a restaurant. We ordered our food and then immediately we were swamped with tons of appetizers. We would be working on one set of appetizers when another was brought out. By the time the food came that I ordered, I wasn't that hungry anymore. That first night was the only time where there were loads of appetizers, as the rest I've gone to haven't done that. However, I've never had that experience back in the United States, so I'm guessing it isn't an American thing.

Just a few of the appetizers we had at the restaurant. It was a great way to break into Italian food, since I'd never had any of the appetizers before.

The Italians are also pretty serious about their pizza. There are little lunch places where you can get a slice (which is actually usually cut straight across the pizza in a fat strip). At sit-down restaurants, ordering pizza means you get an entire pizza. To compare it to American pizzas, I'm guessing the size would be comparable to a small pizza, although I can't remember the last time I actually saw a small pizza in the United States. Another unique part of the Italian dining experience is that you don't get a doggy bag. So when you go to one of these restaurants and get an entire pizza to yourself, you either eat it all, or you leave what you didn't eat. Another difference is that the server won't bring the check until you ask for it, and, unless you specified when you ordered, everything will be on one check. This makes paying up interesting when a big group of us goes out to eat, which is often.

This is all that remained from my (whole) pizza. I don't think I would have been able to eat the whole thing if I hadn't spent a very long day in Pompeii and Naples.

Italians also have a different cultural experience around drinking alcohol. None of us have ever been carded at restaurants when we order alcohol because there isn't a set drinking age in Italy. Italians view drinking as something that's done with your meal, so they usually have one drink or a glass of wine at a restaurant. There is an age requirement for buying alcohol, but teenagers can drink if someone else buys the alcohol if they are too young to buy it themselves. Italians also drink in moderation, and they look down upon drinking in excess and getting drunk. This part is especially nice because I don't think I've ever seen a drunk Italian during the last two weeks. Eating is a big part of many cultures, and I find it interesting how much the Italian ideas surrounding food differ from American ones.

My pina colada from the Hard Rock Cafe. In Italian fashion, I had one drink with my meal.