The Common Ordering Mistake You're Probably Making At Italian Restaurants

For many Americans, heading to an Italian restaurant conjures up a specific type of culinary coziness. Maybe it's digging into a fettuccine Alfredo — one of the best Olive Garden dishes to order — accompanied by the restaurant's iconic never-ending breadsticks. Or perhaps it's splitting a pizza pie among friends and family, with a Caesar salad on the side.

Such culinary experiences are undoubtedly delicious, built for casual, family-oriented enjoyment. Yet they're actually uniquely North American in style, rooted in Italian-American cuisine. After all, Caesar salad hails from Tijuana, not Tuscany. So if you do find yourself at a verifiably Italian restaurant — either in the country itself or a faithful reproduction abroad — then do yourself a favor and order something less familiar.

Italy's cuisine is highly regional, with each style boasting a unique assortment of dishes. Whether it's Lombardy's distinct saffron-infused risotto Milanese or Puglia's rustic orecchiette con le cime di rapa (ear-shaped pasta with broccoli rabe), there's an incredible breadth of dishes past the American favorites. So, fix the ordering pattern of sticking to a recognizable name on the menu, and you'll rediscover the cuisine.

From garlic bread to chicken parmesan, there are many things you should think twice about before ordering at an Italian restaurant. Instead, you'll want to determine the specialty of the eatery; an increasing number of chefs are bringing Italy's locally sourced and regional mindset to the U.S. Rather than just categorizing themselves as "coastal Italian" or "red sauce Italian," chefs let traditional menus shine.

For instance, if the restaurant has a Ligurian twist, you'll want to go for seafood, a hearty mountainous tripe stew like sbira, and — most famously — pasta topped with vibrantly herbal pesto. Yet if there's pizza or arancini on the menu, give them a skip; such dishes emerged elsewhere in Italy. On the contrary, if an eatery is dedicated to Campania, then do order a margherita pizza — it's where Naples is located, after all.

In large part, Italy's dedication to regional cuisine is due to political history. The country only unified in 1861. Before then, it was a completely separate assembly of kingdoms. In fact, it was only during this time that the Italian language was standardized across the peninsula, so it's no surprise the cuisine has still remained distinct. Respect such diversity — while straying from dependable spaghetti and meatballs — and you'll be rewarded with a delicious result.