i started my adventures in Rome, where i first had something known as the pizza Romano (€3.50).
it's basically like two slices of margherita pizza stuck together..almost like a calzone, but not quite. the outside is crispy, and the inside is warm and cheesy. it's quite convenient to eat while walking around, and i got this one right outside of the Vatican Museum.
not satisfied with this one, i chose to have pizza at dinner as well the next evening to get the "authentic Italian pizza" experience. i ordered one topped with prosciutto, salami, and cheese (€6.50) from a restaurant called Ristorante Carlo Menta.
this was amazingly crispy and thin - so freaking thin that i barely tasted any dough at all! they were quite generous with the salami, but not too generous with the prosciutto. notice the single olive in the middle? haha.
i loved the texture of this pizza. it was so, so different from the standard thin-crust you'd get in the US. seriously, look:
you have to have real skill to stretch it out this thin haha. the crust wasn't that amazing though; it felt like i was eating dried bread...
i finished off this meal with an order of their homemade tiramisu (€4.00). yum!
yea...definitely -10 points for plating. haha! the actual dessert was amazing though. they were generous with their portion and you could tell that the ingredients were all quite fresh.
for a snack on the train, i had gotten some bread from the supermarket for €2.35. it looked quite good in the wrapper, and i had a craving for olives at the time.
it was slightly disappointing; the bread came out dry and the olives were incredibly salty and not very flavoured in any other way. i had to force it down during the day because i didn't want to waste food, but i definitely wasn't that big of a fan.
i also tried something called a ciambella (€1.50) that i bought from the snack shop at the hostel.
it was a sugary, sweet poundcake that lasted me throughout the day, so it helped me save a few euros here and there. it was very moist, and i thought it was great. then i noticed that the expiration date wasn't until 2011... that was a bit scary! though it's not the healthiest option, it worked in saving me money, so i'm not complaining.
i had a ton of gelato (€2.00-3.50 / small) when i was there, and i tried to take advantage of as many flavours as possible. this one was nocciola y melon (hazelnut and cantelope).
i know that's a strange mixture of flavours to get, but i couldn't help myself. the hazelnut was addictive enough for me to get it every day, and the melon was a very unique flavour i haven't seen in any US gelato shops. of course, the quality of the ice cream varied from place to place, so i won't generalise. i'm not the biggest ice cream fan, but definitely get yourself a cup or two if you're ever in Italy.
for my last dinner in Venice, we went to a restaurant called Ristorante Alla Conchiglia, and i ordered the gnocchi al granchio (gnocchi with crabmeat) for €10.90. the order arrived with a bread basket, and i was delighted to eat it up.
i also felt like a glass of wine would be necessary to mark my final dinner in Italy, so i had a glass of house red (€4.50).
it was incredibly light. i'm assuming that most red wine buffs wouldn't be too pleased with it because it felt so watered down, but it was perfect for me. i'm not a huge fan of strong and dry reds, so i liked it perfectly fine.
the gnocchi was obviously the highlight of my evening - it was delicious!
they give a generous serving, though if this were in the US i'm sure it'd still be doubled. the crab meat was piled into the sauce, which was great, but it made everything really, really salty.
i know it's difficult controlling sodium with seafood, but really, i felt like i needed to down 2 glasses of water after finishing this. still, the amount of crab on my plate made up for it (: just be sure to check for service fees and covers when eating in Italy. though this meal would have summed up to be €15.40, my check was for €20. ouch.
finally, in Milan i ordered the spaghetti alla carbonara (€6.00) from a little cafe near the fashion district.
it was actually the first time i'd ever had it in my life. i'm not that big of a fan of cream pastas, and i was hesitant because i know how salty pasta with ham can get..
it looked delicious and amazing when it arrived, but i was right - the bits of pancetta made it super salty. i was glad they gave lots and lots of it, but it made the sauce just a bit too heavy.
overall, if you're in Italy, take my advice and splurge on the food if you can. it's worth it to find restaurants that aren't situated smack next to some big touristy place because they'll charge you twice as much and the quality of the food is generally half as good. so wander around a bit - you'll appreciate it when you're taking the first bite.
Ristorante Carlo Menta
via della Lungaretta, 101- 00153 Roma
Ristorante alla Conchiglia
Castello, 4990 - 30122 Venezia
