Today, you don’t need to travel to Italy to taste authentic Italian food. If you live in Montreal, for example, you can get a lot of Italian restaurants there. The way you order food varies due to culture. Here are some tips to order food at an Italian restaurant.
Ordering courses
When you order a meal, ask for a bottle of water or wine. In all Italian restaurants, the waiter will ask what you want to drink. You should start with the ‘antipasti’ which means appetizer.
After that, choose pasta, soup, or risotto from the ‘Primo’ section of the menu. This is the first course. The second course should be poultry, fish, or red meat and you will find it in the ‘Secondo’ section. Then you can order a side dish and dessert if you want to.
Blend with the culture
According to the Italian culture, lunchtime is around 1pm and dinner time around 8pm. So, you should go to the Italian restaurants during those times and not too early.
Order two courses
Though you will have a menu for three courses, appetizers, side dishes, and other things, order two courses. Every course option provides a lot of food and you will be ordering more than you can consume if you go for a three-course meal. However, the portions for each meal in an Italian restaurant are smaller than that in the U.S.
Ask for recommendations
Ask the servers for recommendations about dishes. Nobody knows about the quality and taste of the food better than them. So, they can pick the right course for you.
Tip the server generously
In an Italian restaurant, it is not necessary to tip the server. Still, if you want to consider tipping, then give 10-15% of your bill; that is, tip generously.
So, next time you go to an Italian restaurant in Montreal, make sure you remember these tips and order your food accordingly.