Unlike America, the cuisine of Italy changes as you move from region to region (even sometimes, from city to nearby city), with each area having unique recipes, specialties and culinary traditions. One of the joys of traveling to Italy is experiencing the traditional local cuisine (cucina tipica) — a perfectly prepared risotto in Lombardy or Piedmont, a savory pappa al pomodoro in Florence or lightly fried moeche (soft-shell crabs) in Venice.

Our Italian food guide takes you beyond the culinary experience of the typical tourist and gives you the information you need to order like a local.

Approach Guides offers travelers a region-by-region culinary review that highlights the typical (and the best) antipasti, primi, secondi, and dolci and offers key tips and recommendations for understanding the Italian approach to food and dining (what time to eat, how to tip, when not to order a cappuccino, etc.).

Using our Italian Food Guide During Your Trip

1. Bring only the pages you need. Our Guide to Italian Food is organized by region, which allows you to bring only the pages you need and leave your bulky guidebooks at the hotel.
2. Never miss a “must-try” dish. Our Approach Guide to Italian Food uses a bullet-point based format that enables you to quickly scan through the list of foods and quickly find the recommended “must-try” dishes for each region.
3. Complete your gastronomic experience by drinking local wines. Not only does each region in Italy have typical foods, it also has local wines that use indigenous grapes. To know what to order, pair this food guide with our wine guide, Approach Guide to Italian Wines (or get the AG Wine Guide app for your iPhone).

Buon appetito!

Download a FREE PREVIEW (3 of 29 pages)

Price $9.99 (Format: PDF; available for immediate download)

Also want to “drink local”? Use our iPhone wine app for your trip (no internet connection required):

All Approach Guides are offered as PDF files that can be downloaded and printed immediately after purchase.

Sgombri (mackerel) for sale in an Italian market