Monthly Archives: September 2020

I use two rules for distinguishing a good Italian restaurant from a tourist trap. The rule in Italy is that the menu should have local dishes from the region (e.g. spaghetti alla carbonara is a good sign in Rome but a bad sign in Bologna, tagliatelle alla bolognese is a good sign in Bologna, but spaghetti alla bolognese is a terrible sign anywhere). The rule outside of Italy is that the people who run the restaurant should be born in Italy, especially the chef. These rules are not foolproof, but in my experience they work very well as a rule of thumb.