Italian All-in-One For Dummies (48 page)

The last three terms are generally reserved for the house wine and beer.

When do you pay for your drinks in an Italian coffee bar? It depends. Normally, you have your coffee or whatever first and pay afterward. In little Italian bars, where just one or two people work behind the bar, you simply tell the cashier what you had and pay then. In bigger bars, and especially in large cities with many tourists, you first pay at the register, get a
sales slip
called a
scontrino
(skohn-
tree
-noh), and take that sales slip over to the
barista.

Beverages with even more of a kick

Italy is also famous for its
vini
(
vee
-nee) (
wines
) and other fermented beverages, like the popular after-dinner drinks
limoncello
(lee-mohn-
chehl
-loh) (
lemon liquor
) and
grappa
(
grahp
-pah) (
grape spirit
). Each region has many of its own varieties of wine, so make certain you try some of the wines of the regions you visit.

Talkin' the Talk

Friends eating a casual meal in a
trattoria
(traht-tohr-
ee-
ah) (
little restaurant
) are ordering wine to have with their meal. They are in Tuscany and have ordered
pappa al pomodoro
(
pahp
-pah ahl poh-moh-
doh
-roh) (
a Tuscan bread soup
) and one
bistecca alla fiorentina
(bee-
stehk
-kah
ahl
-lah fyohr-ehn-
tee
-nah) (
huge steak
) for two or more people.

Server:
Ecco la lista dei vini.

ehk
-koh lah
lees
-tah dey
vee
-nee.

Here's the wine list.

Laura:
Che cosa ci consiglia?

keh
koh
-sah chee kohn-
see
-lyah?

What do you recommend?

Server:
Abbiamo un ottimo Chianti della casa.

ahb-
byah
-moh oohn
oht
-tee-moh kyahn-tee
dehl
-lah
kah-
sah.

We have some great house Chianti.

Silvio:
Prendiamo un po' di vino rosso, allora, con la bistecca.

prehn-
dyah
-moh oohn poh dee
vee-
noh
rohs
-soh, ahl-
loh
-rah, kohn lah bee-
stehk
-kah.

Let's get some red wine, then, to have with our steak.

Laura:
Si. Quello della casa?

see.
kwehl
-loh
dehl
-lah
kah
-sah?

Yes. The house wine?

Silvio:
Perfetto!

pehr-
feht
-toh!

Perfect!

 

In Italy, the
aperitivo
(ah-pehr-ah-
tee
-voh) (
before-dinner drink
) is usually taken at the bar, either standing or seated at a
tavolino
(tah-voh-
lee
-noh) (
small table
).
Campari
(kahm-
pah
-ree) (
alcoholic apéritif
),
prosecco
(proh-
sehk
-koh) (
a dry sparkling wine
), and the most fashionable Spritz (zpreetz) (
refreshing wine-based cocktail
) are three major
aperitivi,
but you can also get alcohol-free
aperitivi
like
un Crodino
(kroh-
dee
-noh) (
bitter aperitif
) or
un Sanbitter
(sahn beet-
tehr
)
(
aperitif soda
). The
aperitivo
is frequently served with a delectable assortment of free munchies.

You may prefer to get a
birra
(
beer
-rah) (
beer
)
grande
(
grahn
-deh) (
large
),
media
(
meh
-dyah) (
medium
), or
piccola
(
peek
-koh-lah) (
small
), either in a
bottiglia
(boht-
tee
-lyah) (
bottle
) or
alla spina
(
ahl
-lah
spee
-nah) (
draft beer
).

Dining Out, from Start to Finish

One of the more enjoyable (if potentially fattening) ways to explore a new culture is to sample the native cuisine. People interested in Italian cuisine are lucky — Italian-style restaurants are plentiful in North America. You can eat in a pizza joint or enjoy a traditional, multicourse meal in a classy restaurant. And, if you're fortunate enough to actually travel to Italy, your taste buds are in for a real treat! Just be aware that pizza and pasta are different in Italy than in the United States.

This section discusses the beginnings and endings of meals — from making reservations to paying the tab.

Making reservations

Unless you're going to a pizzeria, to the
trattoria
(traht-toh-
ree
-ah) (
little restaurant
), or to an
osteria
(oh-steh-
ree
-ah) (
small places with a simple but typical menu and a discrete choice of wines and beers
) down the street, you may need to reserve a table in a nice Italian restaurant.

Talkin' the Talk

Mr. Di Leo calls for reservations at his favorite restaurant. (Track 13)

Waiter:
Pronto! Ristorante Roma.

prohn-
toh! rees-toh-
rahn
-teh
roh-
mah.

Hello! Roma Restaurant.

Sig. Di Leo:
Buonasera! Vorrei prenotare un tavolo.

bwoh
-nah-
seh
-rah!
vohr
-rey preh-noh-
tah
-reh oohn
tah-
voh-loh.

Good evening! I would like to reserve a table.

Waiter:
Per stasera?

pehr stah-
seh
-rah?

For this evening?

Sig. Di Leo:
No, per domani.

noh, pehr doh-
mah
-nee.

No, for tomorrow.

Waiter:
Per quante persone?

pehr
kwahn
-teh pehr-
soh
-neh?

For how many people?

Sig. Di Leo:
Per due.

pehr
dooh
-eh.

For two.

Waiter:
A che ora?

ah keh
oh
-rah?

At what time?

Sig. Di Leo:
Alle nove.