13 Restaurant Faux Pas in Italy [Food Guide Reveals All]

Join me, a seasoned food tour guide in Italy, as I delve into the common mistakes tourists make when dining in this culinary paradise:

From understanding the local dining etiquette to avoiding tourist traps, this video is packed with tips to help you eat like a local and enhance your Italian travel experience.

Whether you’re planning a trip or are already here, learn how to navigate Italian restaurants, what to order, and how to blend in seamlessly with the locals.

00:00 Intro
00:58 Bread & Oil
01:55 False Friends
02:39 Restaurant Selection
06:03 Overplan
06:57 Table Math
08:33 Al Banco o Al Tavolo?
09:50 Tap Water
10:52 Attire
11:45 BYOB
12:53 BYOG
14:56 Eat in Crowds
15:44 Disrespect Il Caffè
17:05 Spritz & Dinner
18:02 Afternoon Cappuccino?
19:26 The Pineapple Pizza?
20:29 Travel Without Travelling

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and I’m sure you’re like nah this can’t happen I guarantee you I see it all the time I’m a food tour guide working in Italy and over the course of the years I’ve eaten with countless tourists in countless restaurants and I’ve seen the same mistakes being made over and over again and to help you avoid those mistakes my colleagues and I compiled this list of the top things to avoid doing when you eat in Italy and I’m not talking about cappuccino in the afternoon or pineapple app on Pizza those are preferences and I’ll give you my two cents on that at the end but I’m talking about actual mistakes that come from different social norms that they have here to the rest of the world so if you’re planning a trip to Italy or you’re even in one of my tours I salute you because this video is made to help you avoid getting yourself into an embarrassing situation both for yourself the people you’re with and the restaurant staff so stick around here we go [Music] sometimes the waiter will bring you a plate and olive oil and bazam vinegar because they know Americans do that and Italian Americans do that in the US but it’s not a thing in Italy stay patient keep it for the actual dish Italians use the bread as sceta to absorb the sauce of the food with the bread I guess what I’m trying to say is the actual mistake to make would would be to really ask your waiter to bring out a plate and olive oil and vinegar for you to then fill it up like a soup and start dunking your bread in it first of all it costs the restaurant money and it fills you up with bread rather than actual food so you’re kind of wasting a good appetite on it and it kind of makes you look gluttonous as well so that’s my opinion avoid doing that [Music] avoid these false friends false friends are the same words that mean something else in a different language for example pepperoni is actually chili in Italy and if you want pepperoni ask for salami on a pizza latte means milk if you order a latte you’re going to get milk lat if you want to get what Americans call a latte order a latte macchiato flat white doesn’t exist and finally if the Barista is asking you Americano he’s not asking you your nationality he wants to know if you want a longer bigger cup of [Music] coffee knowing where not to eat your time here is limited and so I really want your meals to be the best possible experience you can have and part of that is wisely selecting the restaurants you’re going going to go to and so I’ve seen people make these three major mistakes When selecting restaurants in Italy the first is eating mere major monuments and while there’s exceptions you’re likely to be paying higher prices for lower quality food it’s just simple economics there’s more people going through none of them are locals and people are just sitting down to eat and so restaurant owners are paying higher rents and they’re not really forced to kind of try to get people to come back here because people are tourists and so quality is very low but there are Exceptions there are these historical venues like Cafe floran at St Mark square or quadri that are some of the oldest Cafe houses in Europe and they’ve served uh celebrities for hundreds of years and so are they expensive yes are they tourist traps is St peters’s Basilica a tourist trap is the ofii gallery a tourist trap no they’re just Treasures of humanity that the whole world wants to see and so yes prices are higher but you’re also paying for the historical venue one dead giveaway though obviously is the Tourist menus when it says menu turistico and there’s a guy hollering at you telling you pegoo come sit please please walk change neighborhoods you’re in the wrong place you’re not going to have a good meal anywhere near here then there’s the good places that everyone wants to to go to and those are the ones that you can most easily fall into and have a uncomfortable evening I mean the places that have fallen victims to their own popularity they they are often good restaurants that have gotten so popular because they appeared in blogs and American blogs and so people are standing in line and they can’t keep up with the demand you can tell these places by going on say Google maps and if they have like three four 5,000 reviews over four stars which is good but like the numbers the masses of reviews are there obviously you’re not going to be able to stroll in there with a party of four you’re probably going to need to stand in line if you don’t have a reservation and the waiters are going to be busy they’re not going to be able to accommodate you as well and so I would really try to choose other types of restaurants that have good reviews but less those are the true gems look a little in quieter neighborhoods the local neighborhood Tratoria and oia those are the places that you want to seek out maybe 100 200 reviews but over four stars that’s a good strategy and if you’re watching this video I know you’re already like that because you clicked on a smaller video from a small Channel and so I salute you and do the same with the restaurants do do a little planning in advance and you’ll often be pleasantly [Music] surprised another mistake I see people make is over planning I’ve seen people arrive with Excel sheets of breakfast lunch and dinner and they have every restaurant planned out and while sure that’s fine but you’re setting yourself up for a lot of pressure I recommend to also leave yourself enough time to get lost and wander go into little side alleys discover new places sneak through the window no I mean peek through the window have a look at the menu and take chances go to little tras and it’s often if you give yourself the permission to Lose Yourself that you’ll be rewarded with the most authentic experiences [Music] the next mistake is perfect to make if you want to en have a nice evening ruined by having the waiters upset at you and you being completely confused and that is expecting the waiter to solve math equations for you in Italy every table gets one receipt they don’t divide bills up per seat number meaning that the people that you’re with and everyone else at the table what they order gets tallied up into one big receipt what you do then is up to you but do not ask the waiters to divide it up for you don’t start asking the waiter well listen I had the cocacola but I didn’t have any water and uh yeah the Certo cuz I have to and then no don’t do that just just don’t do it they’re not going to do it don’t ask them to do it because it’s going to put you into this awkward situation where they’re going to have to refuse and you feel exasperated and so you can tally it up do what you want what I recommend you do is draw it even down the line if you had a little more chip in a little more if you had a little less chip in a little less and it’s all going to be gravy at the end now if you pay a little more for someone else does it really matter cuz if you’re not ready to dish out a Euro or two more for the person that you’re eating with should you even be eating with them in the first [Music] place not knowing the difference between Albano and Al Tavo at the bar or at the table and it’s sometimes quite confusing but in a nutshell there’s two ways to order food or drink in Italy if you’re leaning at the counter at a cafe and you order a cafe a tramino or something something then you eat it at the counter you’re going to pay a lot less a coffee will cost you €120 a tramit will cost you I don’t know 2 but if you actually then take it and go sit down with it that’s where the mistake is made it can come across as you trying to take advantage of that system whereas you’re just making a mistake but if you want to sit down at the table you actually go sit down at the table a waiter will come to you and take your order and you’ll pay the corresponding price price at the end when they bring you the bill so understand the difference between Albano Al Tavo it’s a great way to also save some money I like to go have a cafe all the time Albano it takes me literally it takes me a minute you go you say cafe1 20 on the counter espresso and you’re out [Music] this one I genuinely wish was different in Italy but probably never will be and that is tap water in restaurants or the lack thereof waiters do not know the existence of tap water in a restaurant they’ll pretend it doesn’t exist don’t even bother asking them for tap water it’s not going to happen de facto when you sit down at a table the waiter is going to ask you immediately frante oral what do you mean means is sparkling or Still Water bottled that you will have to pay for at the end only a Euro or two the annoying thing is that it’s often in plastic water bottles so you know it’s Le less than optimal I wish there would be a different way but the best thing is just go for it order the bottle of water drink the water pay for the water call it in the evening and go with the flow [Music] the next mistake would be not understanding the right attire for certain kind of establishments what I mean by that is I know American men like wearing shorts American women like tight fitting Sports clothing and while that’s fine in certain places like Tratoria or oia no one’s going to say anything if you go to a place called The Restaurante in Italy are usually higher end establishments which have uh alak and require a more formal attire and if you go to a Restaurante wearing shorts or Lululemon then you’ll stick out like a sore Thum I don’t know if they’re going to say something per se but I would just avoid that kind of situation wear long pants wear adequate clothing and you’ll be [Music] fun all right this next mistake comes from a question that people ask me surprisingly ly a lot and I’m always kind of baffled because I don’t know um it’s it it usually comes when we’re sitting at ativo and people are drinking and the bottle is half empty and I reserved a a table at a restaurant and then people ask me Sebastian can we just bring our wine to this next place and the answer is no no you can’t bring your wine to another restaurant Be Wild B is not a thing in Italy ever you can’t bring your wine to another restaurant alternatively though you can easily go there and order the Vino deaza which is surprisingly cheap I’m talking about half a liter karaf even in Venice Italy’s most expensive city it’ll cost you like 80 so make the most of it don’t bring your wine to other restaurants [Music] there’s no excuse though for this next mistake it’s bringing your own food to a restaurant and I’m sure you’re like nah this can’t happen I guarantee you I see it all the time people order a gelato at the main square and so they can’t find anywhere to sit and then they want to sit and they just bring their gelato to some other Terrace where there’s people sitting it’s a restaurant and they sit down this is something that I think people don’t do when they’re back home but they somehow allow themselves to do it when they’re in Italy I even had a restaurant owner recently being quite discouraged because he was see he was even getting bad reviews because this waiters were constantly having to tell people to well they didn’t order their ice cream here so please can you go sit somewhere else and so people are leaving one star reviews and this is horrible I feel bad for him he asks me Sebastian is it normal in the US to order takeaway food and bring it and sitting at another restaurant and I’m like no not to my knowledge I don’t think people do that in the US and so he asked me why do people do it here and I tell him I I don’t know so I’m asking you if you know if you’ve done this before or if you’ve seen other people do it please let me know in the comments what is the reasoning behind that are you allowed to do this in the US so in any case there’s no B OG bring your own Gato in Italy if you chose to stand in line and order a gelato to go at the busiest Square in the city and you have no place to sit then that’s kind of on you but if you want to sit down before ordering you just don’t even have to stand in line you go sit at a table and a waiter will come to you and ask you what you want you order a gelato and you’ll pay a little more but at least you’re sitting down and relaxed [Music] the next mistake would be to eat in public I mean in the middle of the square people do this all the time I see it happen all the time they order food and then they go and they walk around with a gelato or even a Big Mac I had a an X FBI inspector get pickpocketed because he was eating a Big Mac in the middle of the main Square in Florence you are opening yourself up to being a victim because nothing screams victim louder to a potential pickpocket in the main Square than a tourist eating a burger or a gelato because you can’t even go and defend yourself your hands are [Music] busy all right if you’re from Melbourne Australia listen up because this next mistake I do not want want to hear you do and that is complain about the coffee at least from the very get-go and to people that you don’t know if you don’t like the taste of Darkly roasted Italian espresso that’s fine but to say yeah the coffee is [ __ ] here right from the start big mistake the Italians are not going to appreciate it because they have a very old Coffee Culture that dates back to when Australia was still a colony of convicts guys so I know you’ve got this coffee scene down in Melbourne where it tastes the fresh berries and you know the zodiac symbol of the farmer that harvested it but just appreciate Italian espresso for what it is at least try be modest about it I’m not going to go to Melbourne and immediately say that veggie might is [ __ ] actually I’m never going to say that because I love Veggie Mite and I’m glad I tried it and I overcame the excessively salty taste and I get it now so do the same with espresso it’s bitter but that’s the fun part of it and if you don’t like it that’s okay [Music] just now we’re getting into the category of preferences but I really recommend to avoid doing this next mistake which is ordering Spritz and food at the same time this is for your own sake because Spritz has such an over whelming taste a perole spritz with you know like it’s it’s strong it’s sparkling it’s sweet it’s bitter it has a lot of Aromas and they’re going to overpower your dish essentially you’re kind of wasting your food by doing that if you like the mix go for it knock yourself out the waiter shouldn’t have anything to say about it but really out of the respect for the food and the work that went into it from the kitchen I recommend to have the Spritz with ativo with finger food and then sticking to wine or water with your [Music] dinner now finally here’s my two cents on these things that you’ll hear everyone talk about which is cappuccino in the afternoon and pineapple on Pizza in my opinion they’re way too overhyped than they deserve to be first of all cappuccino in the afternoon I’ve seen so many Italian order cappuccino in the afternoon that I think there is no validity to this argument I’ve heard flight attendants on United Airlines telling uh passengers that this is not a thing you should do in Italy now I would take this with a big grain of salt because there’s history behind it there’s a bit of a like back in the day Italians would think that eating drinking milk in the afternoon is bad for you but honestly I I think really the weird thing would be to order cappuccino after dinner or ordering coffee during dinner that is strange for them it requires them to start the whole coffee machine uh with the milk steaming milk also but you know if that’s what you like to do do it no one should be rolling their eyes at you especially in the afternoon which is completely normal just know coffee tastes wrong and it is kind of wasting good food but if that’s what you like you do you [Music] [Applause] and then there’s the pineapple on the pizza does this get strong reactions from Italians definitely yes they do not like the even having those two words in the same sentence that being said these are the same Italians that enjoy and think it’s perfectly normal to put french fries in Hot Dogs on pizzas yes you’ll see them around when you come to Italy so I don’t know take that with another big grain of salt if you go to a restaurant and you like eating pineapple on pizza and you see pineapple on Pizza on the menu who is the waiter to say that you should not be ordering that if you get eyes rolling I think he’s not doing his job right you do you the world’s going to turn is it Italian no is it pizza let me know in the comments comments [Music] below the biggest mistake that I see people do all the time in Italy is not traveling sure they’re hauling their suitcases across Florence Rome and Venice but they’re not engaging with the local culture they’re going at it with their preconceived notions of what Italy should be and tasting only the things that they already know taking pictures of it posting it on Instagram and treating Italy a bit like a hunting trophy to check off their traveling list they have many locations we had no idea there was one in Florence but there’s one in New York City and we’ve had it and we love it Pizza Pizza classic cheese Margarita and then we got their tomato pie with the garlic and the oregano and oh my God the oil that is a tourist that is not a traveler a traveler engages with the local culture i asks questions tries new dishes and Italy is so rich with regional foods and unique ingredients and centuries old experience in service so make the most of it pasta carbonada is the most beloved pasta dish in Italy amongst Italians also so it’s normal to always want to order it the truth is is that it’s a speciality of Rome but there’s so much Regional food in Italy so much Regional pasta dishes and seis which is meat and fish that are often overlooked so I would really encourage you to not always order pasta LA carbona or tal LA and try something new try a new pasta dish that you’ve never had try Bala Fiorentina if you’re in Florence if you’re in sicil try pasta La Norma or nice caponata if you’re in in Venice try a good um Pasto or Fato ven there’s so much Regional food that Italy has for you to discover it would be a shame for you to always just order carbonara and gelato during the entirety of your trip that’s the list I hope it helped you out let me know if I overlooked something if something’s happened to you let me in the know in the comments just keep in mind that Italians are really kind patient and accommodating people they’ve been in the service industry for hundreds of years so don’t sweat it you do you just do it with an open mind and you’ll be fine that being said the next video is about a very special dish that was born in the Golden Age of the restaurant service industry really out of a situation where the restaurant accommodated the special needs of a guest and it gave birth to a legendary dish if you’re interested in that stick around this is all about Regional food and travel advice so like And subscribe if that interests you and I’ll see you on the next trip [Music]