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Food & Drink: Table service is most common in restaurants and bars. There are no licensing laws.
Pasta plays a substantial part in Italian recipes, but nearly all regions have developed their own special dishes. Examples of dishes from each region are listed below. Italy has over 20 major wine regions, from Valle d’Aosta on the French border to Sicily and Sardinia in the south.
Wines are named after grape varieties or after their village or area of origin. The most widespread is the Chianti group of vineyards, governed by the Chianti Classico quality controls (denoted by a black cockerel on the neck of each bottle). The Chianti area is the only area in Italy with such quality controls. Denominazione di origine controllata wines come from officially recognised wine-growing areas (similar to Appellation Contrôlée in France), while wines designated Denominazione controllata e garantita are wines of fine quality. Vermouths from Piemonte vary from dry and light pink to dark-coloured and sweet. Aperitifs such as Campari and Punt e Mes are excellent appetisers, while Italian liqueurs include Strega, Galliano, Amaretto and Sambuca. Examples of wine from each region are listed below.
Rome: Food: abbacchio (suckling lamb in white wine flavoured with rosemary), cannelloni (pasta stuffed with meat, calves’ brains, spinach, egg and cheese), broccoli romani (broccoli in white wine), salsa romana (sweet-sour brown sauce with raisins, chestnut and lentil purée served with game) and gnocchi alla romana (semolina dumplings). Of Rome’s cheeses the best include mozzarella, caciotta romana (semi-hard, sweet sheep cheese), pecorino (hard, sharp sheep’s milk cheese) and gorgonzola. Wines: Frascati, Albano, Grottaferrata, Velletri, Montefiascone, and Marino (whites); Marino, Cesanese and Piglio (reds).
Piemonte: Food: bagna caoda (a traditional anchovy soup, served with vegetables), fritto misto piemontese (fried meat, vegetables and fruit), bonet (a chocolate cake made with coffee and local biscuits).
Valle d’Aosta: Food: fonduta (a hot dip with Fontina cheese, milk and egg yolks sprinkled with truffles and white pepper), lepre piemontese (hare cooked in Barbera wine and sprinkled with herbs and bitter chocolate), zabaglione (hot dessert with beaten egg and Marsala wine). Wines: Barolo, Barbera, Barbaresco, Gattinara and Grignolino.
Lombardy: Food: risotto alla milanese (rice with saffron and white wine), zuppa pavese (tasty clear soup with poached eggs), minestrone (thick soup with chopped vegetables), osso buco (shin of veal cooked in tomato sauce served with rice), panettone (Christmas cake with sultanas and candied fruit). Wines: Valtellina, Sassella, Grumello and Inferno.
Trentino and Alto Adige: Food: some excellent sausages and hams come from these regions. Wines: Lago di Caldaro and Santa Maddalena.
Veneto: Food: fegato alla veneziana (calves’ liver thinly sliced and cooked in butter with onions), baccalà alla vicentina (salt cod simmered in milk), radicchio rosso di treviso (wild red chicory with a bitter taste). Wines: Soave, Bardolino and Valpolicella.
Friuli-Venezia Giulia: Food: pasta e fagioli (pasta and beans), prosciutto di San Daniele (raw ham). Wines: Tokai, Malvasia, Pinot Bianco and Pinot Grigio (whites); Merlot, Cabernet and Pinot Nero (reds).
Liguria: Food: pesto (sauce made of basil, garlic, pine nuts and pecorino cheese with pasta), cima genovese (cold veal stuffed with calves’ brains, onions and herbs), pandolce (sweet cake with orange flavour). Wine: Sciacchettra.
Emilia-Romagna: Food: parmigiano (parmesan cheese), prosciutto di Parma (Parma ham), pasta con salsa bolognese (sauce of meat, cheese and tomato served with pasta), vitello alla bolognese (veal cutlet cooked with Parma ham and cheese), cotechino e zampone (pigs’ trotters stuffed with pork and sausages). Wines: Lambrusco, Albana, Trebbiano and Sangiovese.
Tuscany: Food: bistecca alla fiorentina (thick T-bone steak grilled over charcoal, sprinkled with freshly ground black pepper and olive oil), minestrone alla fiorentina (tasty vegetable soup with slices of country bread), pappardelle alla lepre (pasta with hare sauce), tortina di carciofi (baked artichoke pie), cinghiale di maremma (wild boar from Maremma region near Grosseto) with dishes of ham, sausages and steaks. Sweets include panforte di Siena (confection of honey, candied fruits, almonds and cloves), castagnaccio (chestnut cake with nuts and sultanas) and ricciarelli (delicate biscuit of honey and almonds from Siena). Wines: Chianti, Vernaccia, Aleatico and Brunello di Montalcino.
Marche: Food: brodetto (many varieties of fish on toast, garnished with carrot, celery, tomato, laurel tips and white wine), pasticciata (pasta baked in oven, a method preferred by Marches). Wine: Verdicchio.
Abruzzo-Molise: Food: the favourite pasta in this region is known as maccheroni alla chitarra because it is cut in thin strips. Lamb is a favourite ingredient in many dishes. Desserts include parrozzo (rich chocolate cake) and zeppole (sweetened pasta). Wines: Cerasolo di Abruzzo, Montepulciano d'Abruzzo (red); Trebbiano d'Abruzzo (dry white). The district is also home of a strong liqueur known as Centerbe.
Umbria: Food: Extra virgin olive oil, black and white truffles, spaghetti, porchetta alla perugina (suckling pig), carne ai capperi e acciughe (veal with caper and herb sauce) and good-quality local sausages, salami and prosciutto famous throughout Italy. Local ingredients used in Umbrian cooking include pork and beef, cheeses, lentils from the Valerina, fish from Lake Trasimeno and the River Nera, mushrooms and potatoes from Colfiorito. Wine: Orvieto (white, sweet or dry) and numerous red and white wines (including Rubesco from Torgiano and wines from Sagrantino and Montefalco).
Campania: Food: pizza (the culinary pride of Campania) served in a great variety of recipes, bistecca alla pizzaiola (steak with sauce made from tomatoes, garlic and oregano), sfogliatelle (sweet ricotta cheese turnovers) and mozzarella cheese (originally made with buffalo milk). Wines: These come from the islands of Capri and Ischia.
Puglia: Food: coniglio ai capperi (rabbit cooked with capers) and ostriche (fresh oysters baked with bread crumbs). Wines: Sansevero, Santo Stefano, Aleatico di Puglia.
Calabria and Basilicata: Food: sagne chine (lasagne with artichoke and meat balls), zuppa di cipolle (onion soup with Italian brandy), sarde (fresh sardines with olive oil and oregano), alici al limone (fresh anchovies baked with lemon juice), melanzane Sott’Olio (pickled aubergines), mostaccioli (chocolate biscuits) or cannariculi (fried honey biscuits). Wines: Agliatico and Cirò.
Sicily: Food: pesce spada (swordfish stuffed with brandy, mozzarella and herbs, grilled on charcoal), pasta con le sarde (pasta with fresh sardines), caponata (rich dish of olives, anchovies and aubergines), pizza siciliana (pizza with olives and capers) and triglie alla siciliana (grilled mullet with orange peel and white wine). Excellent sweets are cassata (ice cream of various flavours with candied fruit and bitter chocolate) and frutti di marturana (marzipan fruits). Wines: Regaleali, Corvo di Salaparuta (both red and white, a highly aromatic wine ideal for fish), Marsala.
Sardinia: Food: the coastline offers a wide selection of fish, including lobster which is served in soup, stews and grills. Main dishes include burrida (fish stew with dogfish and skate) and calamaretti alla sarda (stuffed baby squid). Wines: Vernaccia, Cannonau, Piani, Oliena and Malvasia.
Nightlife: Nightclubs, discos, restaurants and bars with dancing can be found in most major towns and tourist resorts. In the capital, English-language films can be found at the Pasquine Cinema, Vicolo della Paglia, just off Santa Maria in Trastevere. Restaurants and cafes throughout Italy will invariably have tables outside: in Rome, the Massimo D’Azeglio is a hotel restaurant famous for its classic food. Open-air concerts in summer are organised by the Opera House and the Academy of St Cecilia, while there is open-air theatre at the Baths of Caracalla. Jazz, rock, folk and country music can all be heard at various venues.
Shopping: Many Italian products are world-famous for their style and quality. Care should be taken when buying antiques since Italy is renowned for skilled imitators. Prices are generally fixed and bargaining is not general practice, although a discount may be given on a large purchase. Florence, Milan and Rome are famous as important fashion centres, but smaller towns also offer good scope for shopping. It is advisable to avoid hawkers or sellers on the beaches. Some places are known for particular products, eg Como (Lombardy) for silk, Prato (Tuscany) for textiles, Empoli (Tuscany) for the production of bottles and glasses in green glass, Deruta (Umbria) and Faenza (Emilia-Romagna) for pottery, Carrara (Tuscany) for marble. Torre Annunziata (Campania) and Alghero (Sardinia) are centres for handicraft products in coral, and in several parts of Sardinia business cards and writing paper made of cork are produced. Cremona (Lombardy) is famous for its handmade violins. Castelfidardo (Marche) is famous for its accordion factories, and for its production of guitars and organs. Two small towns concentrate on producing their speciality: Valenza (Piedmont), which has a large number of goldsmith artisans, and Sulmona (Abruzzo), which produces ‘confetti’, sugar-coated almonds used all over Italy for wedding celebrations. Vietri sul Mare (Campania) is one of the most important centres of ceramic paving-tiles, and Ravenna (Emilia-Romagna) is famous for mosaics. Main shopping areas are listed below.
Rome: offers a wide choice of shops and markets. Every shop in the fashionable Via Condotti–Via Sistina area offers a choice of styles, colours and designs rarely matched, but at very high prices. Equally expensive are shops along Via Vittorio Veneto, a street famous for its outdoor cafes. Old books and prints can be bought from bookstalls of Piazza Borghese. Rome’s flea market is at Porta Portese in Trastevere on Sunday mornings, selling everything from second-hand shoes to ‘genuine antiques’.
Milan: the city's industrial wealth is reflected in the chic, elegant shops of Via Montenapoleone. Prices tend to be higher than in other major cities.
Venice: is still famous for its glassware, and there is a great deal of both good and bad glass; that made on the island of Murano, where there are also art dealers and skilful goldsmiths, has a reputation for quality. Venetian lace is also exquisite and expensive; however, most of the lace sold is no longer made locally (only lace made on the island of Burano may properly be called Venetian lace).
Florence: boasts some of the finest goldsmiths, selling from shops largely concentrated along both sides of the Ponte Vecchio bridge. Florentine jewellery has a particular quality of satin finish called satinato. Much filigree jewellery can also be found. Cameos are another speciality of Florence, carved from exotic shells.
Southern Italy: In the south, there are still families handmaking the same local products as their ancestors: pottery and carpets in each region; filigree jewellery and products of wrought iron and brass in Abruzzo; products in wood in Calabria; corals and cameos in Campania; a variety of textiles, including tablecloths, in Sicily and Sardinia. In Cagliari, it is possible to find artistic copies of bronze statuettes from the Nuraghe period of the Sardinian Bronze Age. In the larger towns, such as Naples, Bari, Reggio, Calabria, Palermo and Cagliari, there are elegant shops with a whole range of Italian products. Many smaller towns have outdoor markets, but souvenirs sold there are sometimes of very low quality, probably mass-produced elsewhere.
Shopping hours: Mon-Sat 0830-1230 and 1530-1930, with some variations in northern Italy where the lunch break is shorter and the shops close earlier. Food shops are often closed Wednesday afternoon.
Special Events: Traditional festivals are celebrated in most towns and villages in commemoration of local historical or religious events. For further details, contact ENIT, the Italian State Tourist Board (see Contact Addresses). The following are a selection of some of the events taking place in 2003:
Jan 6 Epiphany Celebrations, nationwide (particularly Piana degli Albanesi and Bordonaro). Jan 6-Mar 5 Ivrea Carnival, Ivrea. Jan 18 San Sebastiano in Mistretta (religious procession), Mistretta. Jan 26 Naviglio Grande Antiques Fair, Milan. Jan-Feb APT Tour (tennis tournament), Milan; Viareggio Carnival (famous for its puppets), Viareggio. Feb Verona Carnival, Verona; Baroque Carnival, Palermo. Feb 2-10 Mandorloin Fiore (spring festival), Agrigento. Feb 3 San Biagio Festival, Comiso. Feb 7-12 Sciacca Carnival, Sciacca. Feb 8 Ravel Evening, Milan. Feb 9-10 Carnival in Acireale, Acireale. Feb 19 San Corrado Festival, Noto. Feb 21-Mar 4 Venice Carnival (traditional masked balls and elaborate costumes). Feb 23 Sellaronda Ski Marathon (nightime skiing race), Trento. Feb 28-Mar 5 Florence Carnival, Florence. Feb-Mar Milan Fashion Week. Mar 2 Carnival of the Deer Man, Castelnuovo del Volturno. Mar 4 Masque of the Devil, Tufara. Mar 13 Village Race (nightime skiing race), Sondrio. Apr Milan Furniture Fair, Milan. Apr 13-20 Holy Week, Rome; Dance of the Devils, Prizzi. Apr 20 Scoppio del Carro (Explosion of the Cart), Florence; Formula One San Marino Grand Prix, Imola. Apr 21 Birth of Rome Celebrations, Rome. Apr 24-May 1 17th Turin International Gay & Lesbian Film Festival, Turin. Apr 25 Greek Byzantine Easter Ritual (Orthodox Easter event), Piana degli Albanesi. May Tennis Masters Series Roma, Rome; Festival of the Cricket, Florence; Vogalonga (boat race), Venice; International Iris Show, Florence; World Press Photo (photography competition), Northern Italy; May Antiques Fair, Rome; Fabbrica Europa (contemporary arts event with the theme The European Myth), Florence. May 1 The Procession of the Snake Catchers, Cocullo; San Filippo Apostolo (religious festival), Aidone; Tomato Festival, Scicli. May 1-6 Festival of the Tatarate (dancing festival), Casteltermini. May 4-5 San Angelo Festival (religious festival), Licata. May 11-Jul Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, Florence. May 15 Corsa dei Ceri (traditional race and revelry), Grubbio. May 24-30 Inforiata: Noto in Bloom, Noto. May 25 Crossbow Tournament, Grubbio. May 27 Medieval Battle, Scicli. May 29 La Sfilata dei Turchi (religious parade), Potenza. May-Jun 16th Gay & Lesbian Film Festival, Milan; Fotographia (photography exhibition), Rome. Jun Calcio Storico (football game played in costumes), Florence; Heineken Jammin Festival (rock festival), Autodrome, Imola; International Ceramics Festival, Montelupo. Jun-Jul Expo Tevere (arts and crafts fair), Rome. Jun 11-24 Festival of Saint John (religious festival), Florence. Jun 20-Aug Arena di Verona (opera festival), Verona. Jun 27-Jul 13 Spoleto Festival, Spoleto. Jun 29 Il Gioco del Ponte (The Battle for the Bridge), Pisa. Jun-Aug Festival Latino Americando (Latin American festival), Milan; International Festival of Music and Culture, Rome. Jul Festa del Redentore (fireworks), Venice; San Remo Fireworks Championship, San Remo. Jul 10-15 Festino di Santa Rosalina (parades, processions and fireworks), Palermo. Jul 15-16 Festa della Madonna del Carmina, Naples. Jul 26 The Christ of the Abyss (aquatic religious ceremony), San Fruttuoso di Campiglio. Jul-Aug The Cinema Isle (open-air cinema), Tiberina Island, Rome. Aug 5 Madonna of the Snow (religious procession), Francofonte. Aug 8-22 Rossini Opera Festival, Pesaro. Aug 28-29 La Perdonanza (day of plenary indulgence), L Aquila. Aug 31 Feast of the Madonna of the Letter (religious procession), Palmi. Aug-Sep Venice Film Festival, Venice; San Rocco Music Festival (Baroque music), Venice. Sep International Urban Theatre Festival, Rome; FIA World Rally Championship, San Remo; Identity & Diversity Festival, Turin. Sep 14 Formula One Italian Grand Prix, Monza; Crossbow Tournament, Sansepolcro. Sep 15-18 Festa dell Nivola (religious festival), Milan. Sep 21 Palio di Asti (medieval tournament), Asti. Sep-Oct Milan Fashion Week, Milan. Oct 4-25 Alba Truffel Festival (auction and market), Alba. Oct 5 Grape Festival, Marino. Oct 11-12 Autumn Festival, Abbadia San Salvatore.
Social Conventions: The social structure is heavily influenced by the Roman Catholic church and, generally speaking, family ties are stronger than in most other countries in Western Europe. Normal social courtesies should be observed. Dress is casual in most places, though beachwear should be confined to the beach. Conservative clothes are expected when visiting religious buildings and smaller, traditional communities. Formal wear is usually indicated on invitations. Smoking is prohibited in some public buildings, transport and cinemas. Visitors are warned to take precautions against theft, particularly in the cities. Tipping: Service charges and state taxes are included in all hotel bills. It is customary to give up to ten per cent in addition if service has been particularly good.
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