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When I'm in Italy, I generally only eat
Italian food. I doubt whether there's another country in Europe that has food
that can keep me coming back for more.
To eat well in Italy, finding
the right restaurant is essential. I appreciate personality-driven restaurants,
run by people keen(热衷的) to share their love of good cooking, and places
serving family recipes. Signs of a good restaurant include a low-rent location,
lots of locals, and a small, handwritten menu in one language. The menu is
small because they're only selling everything they're cooking; it's handwritten
because it's shaped by what is fresh today in the market; and it's in one
language because they mostly serve locals.
For a fast and cheap lunch, I
look for Italian food in corner delis (熟食店): either a rosticceria,
specializing in roasted meats and antipasti(开胃食物), or a
hot table bar — a cafeteria offering a buffet of meat
and vegetables. Another option is to drop by a neighborhood grocery store to
pick up some cold cuts, cheeses, and other foods for a picnic.
Italians tend to spend a long
time on each course, and dinner is the evening's entertainment. For example,
when you have a full-blown Italian dinner in a restaurant, you don't get out
until midnight; a three-hour meal is common. Waiters often provide lots of
drinks that seem designed to keep you from leaving. When you want the bill,
you'll have to ask for it. To "eat and run" is seen as a lost
opportunity.
A couple of years ago, I sat
down at my favorite place in Verona, Enoteca Can Grande, with my friend and
guide Franklin. We let the chef, Giuliano bring us whatever he wanted. Just
after the antipasti arrived, Franklin's wife phoned him and said, "Don't
eat too much cheese or dessert." Later Franklin, who was not thin, surveyed
our table. Sighing, he said, "The foods are so plentiful but I can eat
few."
"That's a pity," I
said.
I enjoyed the food for three
hours and he watched me eating for three hours. Eating in Verona was really an
amazing experience.