Chefs share the 5 best things to order at an Italian restaurant — and 6 you should skip if you want value

Chef and restaurant consultant Julia Helton told BI that when you’re at an Italian eatery where chefs make their own pasta, you should always try to sample some. 

“It’s possible to make your own pasta, but doing it regularly is a hassle. Nicer Italian restaurants have a person on staff who only makes pasta. There is nothing like freshly made pasta — it makes going back to the dried stuff really difficult,” Helton said. 

The best way to appreciate handmade pasta, which is often made daily with real eggs, is to order it with a sauce that enhances rather than conceals its natural flavor.

For example, you might want to pair it with a light drizzle of olive oil or a thin tomato sauce rather than a heavy Alfredo sauce. 

Chef and food blogger Aleka Shunk said dishes that involve veal, like osso buco, are often easier to sample in a restaurant setting than to make from scratch. 

“I love ordering osso buco because veal shanks are hard to find in many local food stores. Plus, this dish takes hours to make and I often don’t have the time to spend cooking it at home,” Shunk told BI. 

Somewhat similar dishes like veal Marsala, veal piccata, and veal scallopini with mushrooms are also tasty options that would be time-consuming to create from scratch, but usually earn their lofty restaurant price tags.

It’s hard to imagine that pizza could ever be a bad choice, but Helton told BI that Margherita pies are “a total rip-off,” and are often one of the most overpriced items on any restaurant menu. 

“Stop paying for this dish,” Helton said. It’s just dough, a little sauce, a few pieces of basil, and part of a log of mozzarella. 

“You’re paying $12 minimum for a dish that costs $1 to make,” Helton said. “I know because I was the executive chef at an Italian restaurant for three years, so I worked out the cost many times”

If you truly want a slice of pizza that’s worth its price tag, spring for a flavor that incorporates a few different toppings or is explicated listed as “wood-fired.” These factors can elevate a pizza beyond what you could easily whip up at home for a few bucks.  

Servino told BI that shelling out top dollar for garlic bread in an Italian restaurant is usually a bad idea. 

“If the restaurant has to hide the flavor of its bread with butter and garlic, you should probably skip it. Look for fresh, homemade, or locally made bread that doesn’t have to be covered in butter and baked in order to taste good,” Servino said. 

Plus, if you’re outside Italy but want an authentic dish, buttery garlic bread that’s loaded with cheese shouldn’t be a top choice. 

In Italy, bread is often served hot with roasted garlic and olive oil. To get the aroma of the garlic, diners rub a crushed clove on the bread and then sparingly use oil to bring out the flavor. 

Getting a glass or two of wine is a great way to complement a delicious Italian meal, but ordering by the glass can inflate your bill. 

“Most people will have two glasses of wine with their meal. A bottle holds four generous pours. Four glasses may cost $60, but a bottle of the same wine may only be $50,” Helton said. 

She also said that if you don’t think you’ll finish an entire bottle, you can ask if it’s possible to take it home to enjoy later.  

Cacio e pepe is made with just three ingredients — pecorino cheese, black pepper, and pasta.

And because the dish is so simple, Linda Harrell, chef and owner at Cibo e Beve in Atlanta told BI that diners should skip it. 

“Cacio e pepe isn’t worth the money. In Italy, this dish is made when someone has no time to make a decent sauce. It’s something made for a quick meal, not a restaurant dish,” she said.

This story was originally published on January 7, 2020, and most recently updated on September 16, 2024.