What Makes a Great Italian Restaurant ?

The Essentials of a Great Italian Restaurant

Your mouth salivates at the thought of homemade sauce, meatballs and garlic bread. However, you head out to a local Italian restaurant one night, and you find the food to be horrible. No one wants their favorite cuisine spoiled, so be sure that you know how to spot a great Italian restaurant in the future.

Not a ChainLet's think about it. A chain restaurant is going to use a recipe that is mass produce. Someone had to sit down and write recipes that would be distributed to thousands of restaurants across the country, and the chefs are just following those recipes. At small, private and family owned establishments, you know that you're getting something that's made with attention to the taste and not just the words on a note card.

Authentic Italian FoodLook for restaurants that serve real Italian food. If the sauce tastes like it just came out of a jar, then you are definitely at the wrong establishment. Look for menu items such as polenta, fresh egg pasta, olive oil and cheeses. This does not mean that the chefs are prohibited from mixing up the recipes a little bit. You just want to make sure that they are using some staples of the Italian diet. Additionally, they should also be making everything fresh. Sauce does not come out of a glass container at a true Italian restaurant.

An Array of WinesWhen you're looking for a restaurant that has authentic Italian cuisine, pull up the wine list online before you head to the establishment. Do they just have a couple of glasses of house wine? Then it's probably not an excellent restaurant. You don't need to order a $90 bottle when you go there, but at least when you see pricier bottles on the menu, you'll know that the restaurant is truly concerned with pleasing your palate is much as possible. You an also check to see if they offer recommendations for certain wines that pair well with specific dishes.

Reviews, Reviews, Reviews

Yes, of course actually going to the restaurant and trying the food is the only real way to know whether or not you think it's great. Alas, this can be a rather expensive endeavor. Therefore, you sometimes need to rely upon the reviews of others. You can generally look up businesses on the Better Business Bureau's website, although it might not give you a full sense of how authentic the cuisine is. You should also just ask family members, friends and coworkers who you know have an appetite for only the finest cuisine. They should be able to point you in the direction of some amazing Italian dining.

After following all of these steps, you still might go to a restaurant and not think that it's that good. Ultimately, the only person who can decide if a restaurant is great for you is you. We all have different palates and different aspects of restaurants and food that we both love and dislike a lot.