nytraveler

I respectfully disagree about pizza in the US.

Granted most pizza in the US is awful(chain fake piza, frozen "pizza") or awful local places that don;t even use real or fresh ingredients. But there are quite a few places where there is truly excellent pizza made with the best fresh ingredients and people who know exactly what they're doing.

There are two places inmy neighborhood alone that have pizza as good as any I have tasted in Italy. (Not surprising,s ince the owners are FROM Italy).

StCirq

I also think there is some exquisite pizza to be had in the USA. For every really good one, though, there are probably a thousand bad ones.

nochblad

k9korps - Polenta as a staple. Whilst not the case in all of Italy it was very much so in certain areas - Valtellina, the valleys above Bergamo etc. To this day it is still an important part of their diet as is butter which is used much less elsewhere in Italy. To illustrate - my diet is so Mediterranean that I buy less than a kilo (2.2 lbs) of butter in a whole year!

bab706

Coda alla Vaccinara (Oxtail)(Rome)
Roast Pork (Tuscany)
Pesto (Cinque Terre)
Pasta with Black Ink (Cuttlefish) (Venice)
Black Truffle Risotto
Fiochetti di formaggio (Ravioli stuffed with pears)

Sorry - more than 5!

northie

Mozarella, tomatoes and basil in Amalfi,fish in Amalfi Tripa Romana in Rome. anywhere with squid ink pasta, lamb in Rome, coffe and pastry at the bar for breakfast-anywhere

ParrotMom

Had terimisu in Rome and I thought I died and went to heaven and the angels had made it.. it was as light as light could be. Going back in two weeks and I'm going to order it wherever I eat..

romana2

Amalfi coasti - ice cold limoncello sipped under the glorious sun
Rome - fried artichokes, spaghetti all'amatriciana, everything you can buy at Volpetti (Via Marmorata), coffee at Tazza d'oro
Tuscany/Florence - bistecca alla fiorentina, Cantucci dipped in vin santo, Brunello
and Venice - risotto alle seppie (you'll like it!), all other types of risotto, too. Everything tastes better with Venice as your backdrop. : )
Enjoy!

NancyD9393

Caprese salad, and gelato (though the gelato in Croatia is better than in Italy !)

shocco67

Ravioli (or other pasta) filled with pumpkin served in a butter/sage sauce. Opened my eyes to the wonders of fresh sage.
Chicken liver pate for appetizer.

barbrn

My palate is probably not as sophisticated as some....but oh the bread and olive oil (just tasted so good over there!)...loved the breadsticks too. And yes loved me some Brunello....I am doing a flashback of the feel and taste going down the throat!! Exquisite.

ekscrunchy

Marlene: The answer to your question depends very much on where you will be in Italy. The foods are vastly different from region to region.

Chynk92010

Are you going on your own or with a tour group? If on your own, be more adventurous and eat what strikes your fancy. Even a simple eggplant dish tastes excellent in Italy. If you're with a tour group, it's usually set menus and you can choose. Nevertheless, Italy has a lot to offer when it comes to foods. Surprise yourself!!!

Patti

I still dream about a dish I had back in 2001--truffles in a milky sauce over pasta. I always look for it on menus and haven't found it again.

willit

"How do people like their polenta?"

As far away as possible - I cannot believe that the Italians, creators of some of the greatest foods in the world, could be responsible for Polenta.

ekscrunchy

Well, there is polenta and then there is..polenta. A polenta I had in the Lake Como a few years ago was just about my favorite dish of the week...

Fra_Diavolo

I used to dislike polenta myself (I thought the Mexicans had the Italians beat as for as corn went), but last year I made a few batches and now I'm hooked. Try it with a pork ragu, or under a ratatouille spiked with a bit of sausage. Chill the leftover polenta, then cut it into strips the next day and crisp them in a bit of olive oil. Or try a variation on the Southern classic and serve with shrimp and prosciutto. You might find you've been missing something.

tejana

In the Amalfi coast and in Venice: spaghetti alla vongole, with a zillion baby clams so small that the shells are no bigger than your thumbnail and the clam is no bigger than your pinky nail - completely illegal in the US and fabulous.

In Tuscany and Umbria - Parpadelle with wild boar sauce (also damn close to impossible to find in the US),and gnocchi with black truffles

tarquin

I don't see how some people can be so dismissive of polenta, it's like disdaining potatoes in Ireland. In some areas of the north, pasta was not commonly eaten until fairly recently, and polenta can be be as rich (with the addition of butter and parmesan) or as austere as required. And it goes well with a wide range of sauces - I like to serve two together, a sausage tomato sauce and a mushroom one.

annw

Capelletti pasta in Emiglia-Romanga.

Limoncello pasta in Amalfi

Gnocchi di Zucca anywhere.

Pecorino or Parmesian cheese with a splash of aged balsamic vinegar.

charnees

Just got back today from Italy. We stayed in a tiny town near Orvieto. The local albergo had a restaurant that was wonderful. Think a Sunday special of suckling pig roasted in the wood oven, with perfectly roasted wedges of small potatoes! OMG!

anyway, what's good in Italy?

Ravioli with such thin pasta you can see the filling!
olive oil
Red wine
Porcini mushrooms
Truffles (tartufi)
In Bologna, a special pasta called gramigna with a sauce of sausage braised in white wine and then in tomato.
Parmigiano reggiano. The real thing from Parma
Pecorino cheese (sheep's milk) from anywhere in Tuscany
Pecorino with truffles!
pecorino with fresh pear
Pecorino with prosciutto
prosciutto di Parma
Balsamic vinegar from Modena--the older the better. But it costs an arm and a leg.
prosciutto and melon
Prosciutto and figs
Gnocchi with butter and sage in Bologna at Meloncello trattoria