ItalyWhat to eat in Italy: top 10 dishes
Traveling to Italy? These are the ten dishes it is best known for, from everyday staples to festive classics, with a short background and a tip on where and when to eat each one. Ranked by how widely they are known around the world.
01Pizza
Pizza is an Italian dish typically consisting of a flat base of leavened wheat-based dough topped with tomato, cheese, and other ingredients, baked at a high temperature, traditionally in a wood-fired oven.
Travel tip Eaten mostly in the evening at pizzerias, often as one whole pizza per person. Slices are sold at takeaway shops, and in Italy people often eat with knife and fork.
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02Spaghetti
Spaghetti is a long, thin, solid, cylindrical pasta. It serves as a staple food of Italian cuisine and is made of milled wheat and water (sometimes enriched with vitamins and minerals), with the standard Italian version using durum-wheat semolina.
Travel tip A pasta course served at lunch or dinner in trattorie and homes. Italians typically twirl it on a fork against the plate and do not cut it.
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03Tiramisu
Tiramisu is an Italian dessert made with coffee-soaked ladyfingers (savoiardi) covered with a cream of egg yolks, sugar, mascarpone, and cocoa powder. It originated in northeastern Italy, and modern versions were popularized in restaurants from the 1970s.
Travel tip Served as a dessert in restaurants and pastry shops and also made at home. It is best eaten chilled after a meal, often with espresso.
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05Macaroni
Macaroni, known in Italian as maccheroni, is a pasta shaped like narrow tubes. Made with durum wheat, macaroni is commonly cut in short lengths; curved macaroni may be referred to as "elbow macaroni".
Travel tip A short tube-shaped pasta used in baked dishes, soups and simple sauces, often cooked at home. In Italian restaurants you will more often find other pasta shapes on menus.
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06Salami
Salami is a salume consisting of fermented and air-dried meat, typically pork. Historically, salami was popular among Southern, Eastern, and Central European peasants because it could be stored at room temperature for a period of time once cut, supplementing…
Travel tip Sliced thin and served on antipasto platters or in sandwiches, and sold at delis and markets. Local varieties differ by region, so ask what is typical nearby.
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07Risotto
Risotto is an Italian rice dish cooked with broth until it reaches a creamy consistency. The broth can be derived from meat, fish or vegetables. Many types of risotto contain butter, onion, white wine, and Parmesan cheese.
Travel tip Common in northern Italy and served as a first course in restaurants. It is cooked to order, so expect a wait, and it is best eaten hot and creamy.
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08Nutella
Nutella is an Italian brand of sweetened hazelnut cocoa spread. Nutella is manufactured by the Italian company Ferrero and was introduced in 1964, although its first iteration dates to 1963.
Travel tip A hazelnut spread eaten at breakfast on bread or with sweet pastries, and sold at supermarkets. Cafés also use it in crepes and desserts.
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09Polenta
Polenta is an Italian dish of boiled cornmeal that was historically made from other grains. It may be allowed to cool and solidify into a loaf that can be baked, fried or grilled.
Travel tip A warm cornmeal dish popular in northern Italy, especially in cooler months. It is served soft with stews or sliced and grilled.
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10Carbonara
Carbonara is a pasta dish made with cured pork, hard cheese, eggs, salt, and black pepper. It is typical of the Lazio region of Italy. The dish took its modern form and name in the middle of the 20th century.
Travel tip A classic Roman pasta served at trattorie, especially in Rome and Lazio. Traditionally it has no cream, so do not expect a creamy sauce.
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