Breakfast: In Italy the breakfast usually consists of a multitude of pastries, cold cuts, and cheese, with an espresso on the side. Unlike is America milk, especially in espresso, is never served cold and is usually served warm with sugar.
Lunch: Unlike in the United States, lunch in Italy is the biggest meal of the day usually consisting of 3 courses. The first course of the lunch is traditionally an appetizer of some sort similar to those offered in America. On my first lunch with my home stay family we had an appetizer consisting of fruits, cheeses, and different meats. The second course offered is a pasta dish, typical of Italian cuisine. Pasta is a staple in Italian dining, and has been seen on the Italian dinner table for years, many believing it was brought back by Marco Polo in the year 1271. The third course of a lunch varied from day to day, but was mostly filled with bread and meat.
Dinner: In Italy dinner would usually consist of 2 courses. First we would begin with a course of cheeses and fruits, many of which my host mother had just bought earlier in the day. Fruit would also be served for desert upon occasion, though this was not a daily occurrence. Our second course was similar to the last course of lunch. We usually had a meat, be it roast beef or salami, as well as another side dish that could be a variety of things. At the end of dinner everyone, except for little Eleanora, would usually have a shot of espresso to wash everything down.
Drinks: Water was a staple in every meal. It was kept chilled, but never with ice like in the United States. In Italy you had to specify sparkling or still water, and both were usually placed on the table at the beginning of the meal. Although Americans commonly assume Italians to have alcoholic beverages at every meal, I found that alcoholics beverages were never present on the dinner table.
This differed significantly from the traditional meal in the United States, where our portions are much larger than those in Italy, but meals have far fewer courses. In Italy, this way of eating has been a tradition for years. Americans also eat meals far quicker than they do in Italy, with an Italian meal taking multiple hours, while an American meal takes only about 1 hour according to the USDA.
Drinks: Water was a staple in every meal. It was kept chilled, but never with ice like in the United States. In Italy you had to specify sparkling or still water, and both were usually placed on the table at the beginning of the meal. Although Americans commonly assume Italians to have alcoholic beverages at every meal, I found that alcoholics beverages were never present on the dinner table.
This differed significantly from the traditional meal in the United States, where our portions are much larger than those in Italy, but meals have far fewer courses. In Italy, this way of eating has been a tradition for years. Americans also eat meals far quicker than they do in Italy, with an Italian meal taking multiple hours, while an American meal takes only about 1 hour according to the USDA.
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| A traditional Italian pasta dish: Ravioli |
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