CVerga: oop sorry! I hadn't read the entire thread! Texan missypie mentioned flat, brown, and landlocked first....and I guess she lives in THAT part of TX. (NICE also!)

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So where does the Olive Garden factor in when discussing where to eat in Italy?
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i agree...lecturing that the food in italy is not like what is served at the olive garden...how insightful. i think most people in the world realise this.

I made the mistake of ordering from the tourist menu in typwritten English one time in Florence. I just wanted something light and the chicken breast sounded fine. It was horrible, tough and just plopped down on the plate next to some tasteless vegetables. The dessert was a spoonful of gelato with freezer burn.

Stay away from the tourist menus in Italy.

"i agree...lecturing that the food in italy is not like what is served at the olive garden...how insightful. i think most people in the world realise this."

Gee, from what I've heard from many, many people, I'm not sure I'd share your optimism tht "most people in the world" realize that. I can't believe the number of times I've heard comments like "it was even better than the food we got in Italy" or "my brother-in-law is Italian and he says Olive Garden is the best."

Meanwhile, beware that when you see a "tourist menu" that includes items on the regular menu making it appear like a real bargain, that the portions and even the preparation of those items may not be anything at all like the same items on the regular menu.

We were in one Italian restaurant in Montepulciano where their English translated menu was just their "run of the mill" stuff. The good stuff/their specials were written in Italian on a daily prepared piece of parchment then copied and distributed to the locals. We had to ask for one and did our own translation -- the food was great!! ((b))

I've been thinking about this thread (I know, get a life)and what a tourist would encounter if they just happend upon restaurants in my part of the world. I live in Texas, so I'll assume for the sake of example that the visitor from western Europe was looking for good Tex-Mex food.

I'm thinking of four Mexician restaurants within a few miles of my house:

Mexican restaurant #1. If you happened on this place, you'd think the food was very bad and if you didn't have a cast iron stomach, you might feel kind a sick afterwards.

Mexican restaurant #2. This is the "famous" place that is pretty bad. They use this bright orange cheese that congeals to something resembling plastic.

Mexican restaurant #3. Festive atmosphere. Food average at best.

Mexican restaurant #4. Trendy hip atmosphere and food so fantastic you'll come home raving about it.

You'll pay roughly the same amount for all four places. You'll find each place full of locals and if you arrive at any of the four at 8 pm on a Saturday night, you'll wait for an hour to get a table.

Do you get my point? If a tourist in my neighborhood just drives until she sees a Mexican restaurant with a parking lot full of cars, she'll have a 50% chance of a bad meal, a 25% chance of an okay meal and a 25% chance of a terrific meal. Doesn't it make sense that the odds are about the same in most any city?

mari5, glad that you realized why I wrote that. I would never write/say something rude to someone about where they live:) Anyway, I like Texas and Texans!

missypie-I agree with you. The same would be true for restaurants where I live serving California cuisine.

Thinking back, some of the best meals that we had in Florence and Venice were when we went where the owners of the Hotel Davanzati and the Locanda Orseolo like to eat. They were the type of people that were looking out for our best interest and I trusted their opinions. Come to think of it, the best meal we had in Rome was a recommendation from our hotel. I would probably rely on recs. like this more in the future.

That is actually one drawback of renting apartments - no friendly front desk folks to recommend restaurants.

The apartment we rented in Florence did have an on-site manager. We asked her advice about restaurants and she said that they were all touristy and bad and that we should buy food and cook our own meals!

missypie

I live in Texas also, San Antonio, and yes, we paid a great price for our home and the city and restaurants
are wonderful, but it doesn't make up for the ungodly HEAT ALL the time........... I moved here from Michgian about a year ago, and it hasn't cooled off yet......... AWFUL.......
Just had to put in my 2 cents about Texas.........

MaureenB

Which of your many threads has your trip report with restaurant recommendations? I've gone through quite a few of yours, but can't find that specific one.

Thanks a bunch.BB

MaureenB
Never mind, I found them....... I think I'm reading too many postings, because I keep forgeting what I've read. I finally started copying the info into a Word document so I can take it with me.......
Thanks again,BB

misspie, I'm trying to figure out your post. You're saying that two of the restaurants near you will be filled with locals even though the food is horrible or so bad it might make you sick, and you might have to wait an hour to eat there. Are the locals in your area particularly stupid or do they just happen to like bad food?

I suppose that judging any food eaten in a "foreign" country as being bad or good may somewhat depend on your frame of reference and how good or bad that same "foreign" food is when you eat it at a restaurant at home.

Anyone who automatically believes that all the Italian food served in Italy is automatically "better" than anything they could possibly get at home could be in for a shock. Or perhaps all the restaurants they've ever eaten Italian food in outside of Italy were not so great.

I do not think it is a "dumb idea" to eat when and where you choose to do so "at the moment." You may find the food is better or it may not be as good.

If it is really "bad" that is unfortunate; if it is really "good" you'll come away feeling wonderful.

Neo, in my city it is the same. There are lots of chains. People moan and groan as the various places do not take reservations (unless it is for a large group). They stand in line for ages. They complain about the prices and the quality of the food. They complain about the cost of the drinks (which are usually way overpriced) etc. And they go back time after time.

A lot of residents do not go to the independently owned restaurants that offer so much more for the money and give more personal service. Guess that is good for me, because I never have a problem getting a table, lol.

I'm sorry I didn't see your question. My trip reports are posted separately for each city: Rome, Florence and Venice. Here's just the restaurant portions of them:

Florence: The afternoon we arrived, my daughter took me to a rooftop café, which overlooks the Duomo. It is on the top of a nice little ‘department’ store. I think it’s called Ristorante Ottorino, via delle Oche, 12-16r. We enjoyed wine and salads, on the sunny afternoon, with a close-up view of the Duomo. A very nice introduction to Florence for me.

...My daughter recommended one of her favorite restaurants, the Trattoria Garga on Via del Moro 48/R, phone 055 2398898. We had an amazing meal there, probably my best in Italy. My dish was veal with avocado, which sounds odd (most really good dishes do, I think), and was mouth-watering. Our waiter was a riot-- singing and joking all over the restaurant. It was a friendly, lively, bustling atmosphere with excellent food. We paid 81EUR for two, with a half-liter of house wine.

...We returned to town and finished our shopping mission: to find a wallet and a belt for my son. My daughter’s recommendation was a little store on Via del Corso 69/r, called Leonardo da Vinci. A very nice woman runs it, and my daughter thought her prices were the best for quality pieces.


...Our second day, we took a train and then a bus to San Gimignano, for a day-trip. We had beautiful blue-sky weather, about 75 degrees. It was a perfect day to wander the little town. We had wine and salads at a wine bar, overlooking the hills. It was called Enoteca di Vinorum, Pza Cisterna 30.

...We returned to our hotel, to get ready for dinner, again at one of my daughter’s favorite restaurants, Acqua Al 2 (pronounced 'aqua al duo'), Via della Vigna Vecchia, 40/R, phone 055 284170. They are known for their perfect steak with balsamic. I had it and was impressed. (They are now opening a restaurant in San Diego, believe it or not.) This restaurant is known throughout Florence, and is very popular, so it gets loud and crowded, but very worth it, even though the service was a tad spotty. We split a half-liter of house red wine, and we paid 50.70EUR for two dining.

...After the Accademia, we found a place to sit on the patio and enjoy a nice lunch, at Trattoria Za-Za, at Piazza del Mercato Centrale, 26R. It's popular with business people, and we enjoyed nice omelettes there. Lunch for two, with a glass of wine for each, was 25.50EUR.

Venice: The next day was Mother’s Day, so we headed out to find Bar Caffe La Piscina for a special brunch. Having read so much about the Pension La Calcina, Dorsoduro 780, I had sent an availability inquiry via e-mail to them while looking for accommodations in Venice. Even though they were full, La Calcina sent back a nice e-mail with their regrets, and an offer to visit their lovely restaurant, La Piscina, including a 12 percent discount on our meal, to thank us for our interest (a very nice touch).

Researching La Piscina on the internet, I thought it looked very attractive. It sits on the Zattere, with a beautiful view of the Giudecca canal and the pretty buildings across it. La Piscina’s outdoor tables are shaded by pretty blue umbrellas, and are set on a wooden deck over the water.

We were very happy we’d made the somewhat long and hungry walk to Dorsoduro, because eating at La Piscina was a real treat. The service was impeccable, the atmosphere amazing, and we had a beautiful blue-sky day to enjoy the view. Our meal included wine, bottled water, a primi, a “snack”, and a secondi, for 46.50EUR, minus 5.50 EUR for our discount. It was an especially memorable Mother’s Day, for sure.

...We especially liked all the Murano glass offered for sale in shops throughout Venice, and we took time to look in many of them. One glass shop where we found an especially nice, simple necklace and earring set at a very good price, was Vetri Artistici di Murano, 3 G di Giordani, Castello 4589 (www.venetian-art.com).

Our first night, we ate at Trattoria Alla Rivetta, recommended by the hotel for its fish menu. It’s at Ponte S. Provolo 4625. It was nice, with a lot of locals and others lining up to eat there. Our meal was 58.24EUR, for two fish entrees, and a half-liter of house wine.

The second night, we ate at Osteria Alla Botte, San Marco 5482. It was a very friendly and busy little place, with reasonable prices. Our meal was 46 EUR, also for two fish dishes and a half-liter of house wine.

Rome: ...Next, we stopped for dinner at Rosa Rosae Ristorante, via di Pietra 88. It was a very nice atmosphere, but a bit touristy. Food was just so-so, but service was friendly. Prices were on the higher side for the quality, at about 52EUR for two, with a half-liter of house wine. My veal was ok, but a bit tough.

...Later, for dinner, we headed back toward a restaurant where my daughter had eaten earlier that semester. It’s very casual and good, called the Maccheroni Ristorante at Piazza delle Coppelle, 44, phone 06 68307895. It’s very popular with locals and gets very busy. The service is friendly and the atmosphere is lively and interesting. About 47 EUR for two, with one-half liter of house wine.

...Trying to eat ‘lunch’ in Italy in mid-day is a big problem, as probably everybody already knows. Once they close after lunch around 3:00, restaurants don’t open again until at least 7:00, and it wasn’t easy to find a market for picnic snacks. Finding a place to sit and enjoy a salad in the afternoon is a big challenge. We didn’t have much choice, so when we found a place that looked nice and was serving food at that time of day, we didn’t care much about the price or the menu. Of course, it was outrageously expensive and rather mediocre. (Can you say “tourist trap”?) But, it was worth every penny to get some food and take a break. And it was a really charming place, with very nice outdoor seating.

...We had reservations to meet my daughter’s friend for dinner at 9:00. He had studied in Rome that semester and recommended his favorite restaurant in the neighborhood where he’d lived, called Il Matriciano, on Via dei Gracchi, 49- 61. (Reservations advised—phone 063213040, or 063212327) It’s perfect for a more special dinner, but certainly not over-the-top. For three people dining, we paid just 103 EUR, which included a liter of house wine. We shared two appetizers, and two of us had veal dishes, one had just spaghetti. We each enjoyed coffee and dessert. It is a very, very friendly and pleasant place. We completely enjoyed it."

Sorry it's so long-- but maybe has info. you can use. Have fun in Italy!

Boy, I think I'm lucky. Here in Staten Island (which, yes, IS part of New York City!) I really don't recall EVER having a bad meal. I would guestimate that 75% of the island is italian/italian american, and we really do have some fantastic italian restaurants and bakeries here (not to mention salumeria!!). The whole island is pretty much Little Italy..

Which is yet another reason why I'm looking forward to my italy trip in October--to compare and contrast the food (especially the pizza! LOL)

CVerga -

Olive Garden comes in only because MissyPie was extolling the side of the road chain restaurants in Texas - saying the latter were much better than what she found in Italy. Just trying to point out that Italian food in Italy is nothing like in chain restaurants here - and you can't expect similar dining in Italy. (And who would want it anyway?)

Of course there are grat Italian restaurants in the US - NYC has tons of them - and the food is served more similarly to that in italy (except for order of salad course) than in those ghastly chain places.

Having been to Italy several times, I can verify that the quality of restaurants can be spotty. Also, as a generalization, I think it's a lot easier in the US (in the Northeast, anyway) to get an inexpensive good meal than in much of Italy and Europe. I just happen to think that food in the US in less expensive, too.

I can tell you how we've increased our odds of getting a good meal, but it helps to be able to speak Italian (which I do, enough to get by).

When in a shop, I usually ask someone there if there's a good local restaurant, and often we get good recommendations that way.

Horrors! My name has been associated with Olive Garden! (I've eaten there exactly once.) Perish the thought!

Anyway, I mentioned a local chain for the idea that in Italy, the OP should not expect the same good quality of food we get for cheap here.

Missypie your post made me laugh! I didn't get the impression that you used the O.G. as a point of reference in your post. Your reputation should still be intact.