On a recent business trip to Italy, some of my associates
and I found this out the hard way. We had been wined and dined quite nicely
all week by our hosts, and by Thursday, we were ready for a bit of a break
from the long, heavy meals. Additionally, the bill for all those courses can
really add up at a restaurant when you're on a tight budget. Six of us walked
into a restaurant on the Piazza near our hotel and were seated by the maitre
d'. When the waiter came to take our order, we explained that we were only
interested in ordering pasta.
He immediately became testy with us, explaining that we were
expected to order an appetizer, then the pasta course, and then the meat
course. We tried once again to explain that we weren't very hungry and just
wanted something small to eat. He left us and returned with the maitre d'.
Again, we pleaded our lack of hunger, but the maitre d' also got annoyed and
began to tell us that the restaurant was famous for its small portions and
that we would not be satisfied with just a tiny pasta dish.
At this point we were becoming very frustrated; it was
nearing the end of a very busy week, we were tired, and all we wanted was a
little bite to eat before returning to our hotel rooms. We told the maitre d'
to give us a few minutes to decide what we wanted to do. After he walked away,
we decided the best thing to do would be to leave some money for the bread
sticks we ate and to just go find another place for dinner. It was obvious the
waiter and maitre d' didn't like us very much and we didn't want to be bullied
into spending a lot of money on four courses of food that we weren't going to
eat – no matter how "small" the portions were! So, we got up, left
10.000 lira (about US$6.00) for the breadsticks, and walked out.
As we left, we tried to explain again that all we had wanted
was a small meal and that unfortunately, they didn't want us to just order
that, so we were leaving. The maitre d' began swearing at us in Italian and
told us "Go then, there's a McDonald's around the corner." Upon
leaving, we walked across the Piazza we were on, past the McDonald's, and over
to a Pizzeria where we all were able to order a simple pizza and a couple of
beers. It was a relaxed atmosphere, with very good food and pleasant service.
Our cost per head came to about 30.000 lira (US$18.00).
The moral of the story is, if you're looking for the Italian
food experience without dropping a large amount of money on a four-course
meal, you don't necessarily have to resort to “fast food.” A good pizzeria
will give you the opportunity to dine Italian on a moderate budget. Your
hotel's concierge should be able to recommend one nearby. However, make sure
you treat yourself to the four-course experience at least once before you
leave. After all, when in Rome . . .
Bernadette Geyer, Arlington, Virginia, USA
© Hotel Insider
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