It isn't that Italian pasta has eggs. Most doesn't, and (though I'll accept correction) if it does, it's rare enough that the menu will say it ("pasta all'uovo"). Spaghetti (as well as linguine and buccherini), penne, macaroni (usually spelled "maccheroni") and cannelloni never do: it's almost always ribbon pasta (usually called tagliatelli or papardelle) where there's a risk, though the best Italian eateries (ie those serving local food) have hundreds of names for varieties of pasta.

First, though, on a recent trip I was amazed how sensitised Italian waiter and food stores now are to genuine allergies, like eggs (as opposed to what they still see as silly foreign fads, like strict veganism). So yo can probably trust their advice.

Second, you do need to acquire menu Italian. There are grisly Western versions of pizza, for example, that include an egg - and some Italian classics (spaghetti carbonara above all) where eggs are essential to the sauce, and the rareEnglish translations might not bother spelling this out. Ditto "meat" dishes like cotoletta alla milanese (or almost any other breadcrumbed meat or fish), where the crumbs are bound to the animal protein by egg.

It depends what you mean by "allergic". If it means near-fatal reaction, the only sage strategy is to learn what's guaranteed to be egg-free, or learn a small safe repertoire (like spaghetti with tomato sauce), and stick rigidly to that.

If it just means his eyes water and he sneezes, it might well be easier to eat anything not self-evidently eggy, and learn from experience.

I am cautious about giving him spagetti with tomato sauce, unless the waiter can bring me the actual pasta box where i can read the list of ingredients ,which might be a problem to do in certain restaurants. i love to cook and read/watch cooking show so I am usually familiar or can guess if the dish has eggs in it. But if Something is questionable I rather not give it to him.

<<unless the waiter can bring me the actual pasta box where i can read the list of ingredients>>

I realize that boxed pasta in Italy is probably the norm (and perfectly fine) in many eating establishments, but I wouldn't go to a restaurant assuming they used boxed pasta (and you'd need to read Italian to figure out the ingredients anyway).

It is not difficult to tell apart fresh egg pasta from the eggless dry pasta; you just need some practice. Spaghetti, penne, conchiglie, farfalle, fusilli are usually eggless (I do not remember ever seeing spaghetti with eggs, they would have to be much thicker). Flat pasta like tagliatelle, fettuccine, pappardelle, tagliolini are usually with eggs. Lasagne come in both versions.

I think you have a problem. You can never be sure if a pasta or pizza dough was made using egg, unless you ask and are certain of getting a truthful answer.

Stick with plainly-cooked meat, vegetables, and salads. Sorry, but I really think that's your only option.

Do what you think is best, but having NO EGGS written out and ask, I think you could do better. What do you do in the US? But he won't starve.
Gnocchi?

In half a century of eating, selling, designing labels for and arguing with regulatory authorities in several countries (including Italy) about the labelling of, pasta I've never seen or heard of eggs being used to make spaghetti.

As far as I'm aware it's chemically and physically impossible to achieve the taste and mouth feel of spaghetti if the pasta includes eggs.

flanner: People I know who have severe egg allergies generally avoid all types of store-bought pasta for fear that the machinery used to make even egg-less pasta may also have been used to make an egg pasta. It's not just about the ingredients.

I am faced with a similar problem of a food allergy. My solution is to carry a detailed description of what I am allergic to and a request in the native language that I not be served anything with it, translated by a native soeaker of the language, who, was for Italy, a doctor. For any dish that had a chance of including the offending ingredient, I showed the translation to the waiter. I had no incidents.

I also have it in Chinese, which got me a substitution for one dish on a banquet menu. The waiter spoke no English.

(Native sPeaker)

Oh, beware of gelato, some flavors of which have egg. Others won't, unless it is in the base (unflavored) mix.

Love the question as I'm facing the same dilemma. I'm highly sensitive to yolks (near instant migraine) but can handle most breads and eat pasta all the time.

Italy without pasta seems like sacrilege to me but then I also have the option planned in for the accidental ingestion of both carrying my medication with me and making sure the staff is advised of the potential issue.

How you handle it will definitely vary based on the severity of the allergy.

Good luck!