LearnthecorrectvocabularyandsentencesfororderingfoodinItaly. PODCAST.
Therearesomecommonpractices,setphrasesandwordsyoucanuseanywhere inItaly fororderingfoodandmakeyourselfunderstood. Wearegoingtoseethemtogether. Italianbreakfastisverysimple.Peopleeatthecolazioneat homeoratcafeterias(inItalywesimplycallita”bar”).Weusuallyhaveacaffelatte,(coffeeandmilk),cappuccino,orevenasimplecaffèandasweetpastry,abriocheorcornetto(croissant). InaB&B,a socalledagriturismo, youcaneattastylocalfoodlikesalameandprosciutto,formaggio(cheese)pane(bread)anddolcifattiincasa (homemadecakes)forbreakfast. Ilpranzoisusuallylighterthanlacena (supper).Onholiday however,proportionsandportionsarenotundercontrol.Ifyouwantalightmeal,youcaneata paninoconaffettati(delimeatlikeprosciuttoetc) porchetta (spit-roastedpork)formaggio.Youcanaskasalumiere (grocer)toprepareitforyouandfillitthewayyoulikeit. Anothergoodandcheapoptionisamenùa10euro,ormenùturisticoalunchsetwhichincludesaprimopiatto (pastaorrisotto),secondopiatto-carneopesce (meatorfish), contornodiverdura (patate,pomodori,insalataverde – sidedish,usuallypotatoes,tomatoesorgreensalad),pane(bread)acqua(water)andsometimesevenavinodellacasa,1/4 literof housewine.Uncaffèespressoisalwayspartofit. Ifyourbudgetallowsafulllunchinatrattoriaorristorante,ofcourseyoucaneatanddrinkasmuchasyouwant.ThecoursesofanItalianmealare:antipasto(appetizer),primo(firstdish),secondo(maindish),contorno(sidedish),formaggio(cheese),dolce(dessert),caffèandifyouarereadytotakeanap,anamaro(typicalItaliantonicliquor).Readytopaythebill?Askthewaiter,Ilcontoperfavore. Lacenacanberather cheapatapizzeria orexpensiveinanelegantristorante. Italiansusually startadinner withsomeappetizers.Weusuallyeataffettati, cheese,andthefamousgrilledvegetablesmarinatedinoliveoil,thesocalledsottolio. Ifyoupreferfish,especiallyifyouarevisitingaplaceonthecoast,youcanorderanantipastodimare, aselectionofcoldseafoodandfish,pickled in oliveoilandlemon,ormoresophisticatedcoldentries. Ifyoutrustyourwaiter,andseethatotherpeoplearehavinganiceantipasto,youcanaskfortheantipastodellacasa,aselectionofpopularappetizers. ForgetabouttheItaliandishesyoucanfindathome. YouwillneverfindAmerican fettuccineAlfredo ormacaroniandcheese.Italiansdon’tevenknowwhattheyare. Pastaisking,from theextremenorthtoSicily.Thevarietyofshapes,fillings,saucesandcondimentsishuge. Risottoisprettycommoneverywherebutitismorepopularin thenorthernpartofthecountry.Pastaisusuallyservedaldente.Ifit’sovercooked wesayitisscotta. Youcanunderstandiftherestaurantisdecentif theyserveyourpastawithaformaggiera, acheesebowl,withgratedparmigianoorpecorino. Askforitifthewaiter forgets. Nowadaysrestaurantsservinggluten-freepastaareeasytofindinbigcities. Maybeyou’renotinthemoodforeatingmuchoryouhadaquitecaloriclunch,soyoucanaskthewaiterforasmall portion,ortoshareyourprimopiatto. Let’srecapwithapodcast: “Primo”and”secondo”canbeequallyconsideredmaincourses,butthesecondoisfarmorediverse.Meatandfish arethemainingredientsofasecondo. Ifyouorderasteak,thefamousbisteccafiorentina,grilled t-bonesteak, itoften comesalsangue(literally”bloody”rare),butyoucanhaveitcottaapuntino(medium)orbencotta(welldone). TheItaliancoastlineisverylong,andsoisthemenuofpesce -fishandfruttidimare -seafood. Bothmeatandfisharecookedindifferentfashions:bollito-boiled,grigliato-grilled,fritto-fried,inumido-stewed,alvapore-steamed,alforno-intheoven,inpadella-panfried. Dependingonthemaincourseyoucanaskamatchingcontorno,sidedish.Freshandgreenvegetables(verdura)areas commonas theubiquitouspotatoes. Italyisoneofthelargestproducersofwineintheworld.Andmineralwater.Thelatteriseasytoorder.Youcanhaveyouracqua naturale(still)orfrizzante(fizzy). Youcanorderunacaraffa (apitcher)ofvinodellacasa(housewine)unbicchiere(aglass)orunabottiglia(abottle). Sometimesalocal vinodellacasaischeaperandbetterthanbottledwine. Thanksforreading.Trythequizonthispageandwin afreeItalianSkype classwithanativeteacher