In fact, many dishes found in restaurants don’t actually come from Italian gastronomy. Like carbonara pasta made with cream – considered an abomination by Italians – some dishes served in “Italian” restaurants are not eaten at all at La Botte.
If you want to eat one authentic Italian specialty at the restaurant it would therefore be better to avoid ordering certain ones disheserected by Feminine. According to several cooksthey do not exist in their country.
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To start your meal, you can choose garlic bread. Although they are generally very good, there is really nothing Italian about them… “It is heavy and sickly and has absolutely nothing in common with the delicate bruschetta served in Italy, with a light rub of garlic drizzled with extra virgin olive oil on toasted slices of bread”explains a chef.
For pizzawe do not recommend choosing “creative” toppings. “American pizzas have become too many”Chef Gaeta explained. “So I recommend sticking to simple ingredients.” The perfect example of a garnish that Italian chefs don’t like? Pineapple! “It’s a fruit that doesn’t go well with Italian flavors”says Matteo Venini, executive chef at a pizzeria in Washington, DC
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On the side of pasta, there are actually several recipes that do not come from Italy. We can already quote marinara saucewhich is generally not similar to what is served in the country. “Unlike American marinara sauce, a good tomato sauce [en Italie] is usually a bit grumpy”, explains chef Jacopo Falleni, owner of an Italian restaurant in California. For him is “American marinara sauce” Have “Faux oregano and peppery garlic flavor”.
The chef also mentions Fettuccine Alfredo : “In Italy, pasta dishes aim to keep it simple and let each ingredient shine. But Alfredo is filled with cream and butter, which is far too heavy. This really misses the point of what Italian pasta is, which is simplicity and elegance. And then there’s the chicken: a total disaster! It’s like putting ketchup on risotto. Just why? I wish I could use a hand gesture to show how wrong that is!”
According to Chief Venini Spaghetti with meatballs must also be avoided. “An Americanized Italian dish I would avoid is spaghetti with meatballs”he explains. “In Italy, meatballs are usually served by themselves, maybe with bread or a salad, but never over spaghetti. […] Although it is popular and can be comforting, it is something I would not cook or order as it lacks the authenticity and balance of flavors of traditional Italian cuisine.
Stefano Carniato, chef and owner of Italian restaurants in Miami, reserves the same fate chicken pasta. Because he loves restaurants “add chicken to a pasta dish that already has many components”. He gives an example: “Pasta al pomodoro with fresh basil and tomato is sublime and requires nothing else”.
If the chefs interviewed are talking about Italian restaurants in America, we can easily apply their advice to those at home. You have been warned!
