How to dine like a local in Italy

In Italy, dining is a sensory experience where every restaurant tells its own story. Authentic spots reveal themselves in the creak of wooden tables, the freshness of the ingredients, and the sounds of family members calling to each other in the kitchen, whereas inauthentic ones can leave you unsatisfied. Fortunately, there are unmistakable signs you’ve stepped into a great Italian restaurant, where red flags are off the menu. 

1. Less is more

If the menu reads like a phonebook with endless options, chances are the chef is as surprised as you when you order something unfamiliar. Worse, it’s laminated, adorned with flags and photos.

You're after a tight list, ideally scribbled in handwriting that suggests the chef was in a hurry to get back to the kitchen. Likely found in an osteria or trattoria where you can eat like a local, Vecchia Trattoria Buralli is a shining example. Tucked inside the historical walls of Lucca, each day the menu is remade, featuring Tuscan specialties like hand-rolled pici pasta.

2. La famiglia

Italian food is a celebration of family and nowhere is that more apparent than in an Italian restaurant. Here, you'll hear your server call out an order to Papa, or spot Nonno (grandfather) sweating over the pizza oven, or Nonna (grandmother) stirring a pot of slow-cooked ragù. Nonna is the living recipe book; she’s been perfecting her craft long before you were born, and her presence is a sure sign that what you’re about to eat holds a direct link to the past. 

This legacy lives on in establishments like Milan’s Trattoria Arlati, in the same family since 1936, and Ferrara’s Al Brindisi, which served workers constructing the Duomo in 1435.

3. Get in line

A great restaurant doesn’t need a promoter — a buttadentro — to pull you in; its quality speaks for itself.  Waiting outside or needing an in-person reservation is often a good sign. Take Pizzeria Ai Marmi in Rome — often hailed as the city’s best pizzeria — where you can expect to wait but not be disappointed: A well-oiled production line provides dinner and a show.

Conversely, an empty restaurant might mean you’ve arrived too early. Italians tend to eat late and are likely still having an aperitivo. Typically, lunch is served between 1 p.m. and 2:30 p.m., and dinner from 8:30 p.m. and 10 p.m. If you're seated before 7 p.m. (or even find the restaurant open), it likely caters to tourists.

4. Get lost

Authentic Italian cuisine isn’t found in the shadow of the Colosseum but in backstreets and countryside holes-in-the-wall. Venture off the beaten path to discover culinary gladiators.

Whether it’s a day trip from Florence to La Casa del Prosciutto in Vicchio to meet 91-year-old chef Nonno Gino, or a pilgrimage from Cagliari to Ristorante Letizia in Nuxis for wild porcini, you'll find authentic culinary gems wherever you go. 

5. A sensory experience 

The kitchen announces itself from the moment you step inside: the wafting scent of sizzling soffritto, the bubbling of freshly made pasta, searing heat from a wood-fired oven.

The daily specials showcase high-quality, local ingredients, what’s seasonal, and what the chef found that morning. Osteria Afrodite shaves fresh black truffle over tagliatelle, pairing it with nutty, 40 month-aged parmesan. At Erba Brusca, vegetables come straight from the garden next door. Trippa lets the local market dictate the menu.

The best restaurants often wear their regional identity with pride while others are famous for one dish: velvety cacio e pepe at Roscioli Salumeria; jewel-like tortellini in Hosteria Giusti.

You don’t want anything too showy or destrutturato (deconstructed). The food is effortlessly elegant. Tiramisù isn’t piped into a martini glass, it’s lovingly scooped from a generous tray.

6. Do as the locals do

The restaurant hums with the rhythm of regulars who have been coming for years. Pull up a chair at Necci dal 1924 in Rome's Pigneto neighborhood, and you'll see uniformed workers taking their lunch break, families slipping into their usual table like a well-worn shoe. The waiter might not ask you what you want — they already know.

If the only English you hear is your own, you’re in the right place. Follow the locals’ lead and order what they order.

7. If these walls could talk

The decor speaks before the food arrives. Family photos and hand-painted ceramics are declarations of identity.

The vermillion walls of Ferro di Cavallo in Palermo radiate high-octane energy, while the white-washed stones of Trattoria San Giuseppe Cenobio in Nardò tell you the food is sacrosanct. Handwoven baskets lining the walls of Cagliari’s Sa Piola proclaim its kitchen honors Sardinia’s pastoral soul.

8. Intimate spaces

Whether it’s the weight of old family silverware or simple paper placemats, the restaurant feels like coming home. You won’t find flashy interiors designed to impress at Trattoria Cammillo in Florence, just a few cozy tables on terrazzo floors softened by years of footsteps. The music is the gentle chatter of people having a good time.

The restaurant isn’t focused on trends, but instead focuses on food and those who gather around it. It exudes sprezzatura, the quiet confidence of a place that doesn’t need to try too hard.

9. In vino veritas

Wine is the soul of the meal, and the list must be robust, telling you all you need to know. Should the restaurant offer vino della casa — the humble, unlabeled, nameless house wine poured into a carafe — you’ve likely struck gold.

At Ristorante da Giovanni, in Cortina Vecchia, the local wine is served in ceramic bowls, or "scodelle," deepening its connection to the terroir. It’s the wine the staff drink, the one that pairs perfectly with the food because it was made for it. A deep, honest swig of the surrounding region and liquid testament to a place that values grit over gloss.

10. Personal recommendations

Memorable dining experiences are born from countless details. It’s the owner making their personal rounds, offering tailored recommendations and a complimentary glass of homemade amaro (Milan’s Trattoria San Filippo Neri home-brews theirs) that makes you feel special.

The staff treat you like extended family, sharing the heritage behind every dish, their understanding of your specific taste living proof of generational wisdom.

Here, service isn’t about earning tips (it’s not customary in Italy) — though if you feel like you want to anyway, you should.