Must-Try Food Italy Is Famous For

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Yes, Italian food is an absolute dream, and there are certain dishes Italy is famous for that you just can’t leave without trying! Trying to replicate the feeling my taste buds and body had in Italy by dining at Stateside Italian restaurants has only left me unsatisfied and checking flight prices to hop my ass on a plane back to Europe.

A lot of these dishes included ingredients I don’t normally care to eat, but if there’s a time to be adventurous with your appetite, it’s during travel! I had so much amazing food on my Italian vacation, from simple Roman pasta dishes to limoncello in Sorrento. Here are the must-try foods Italy is famous for!

Food Italy Is Famous For

1. Carbonara

This pasta dish’s main components are egg, cheese, pancetta, black pepper, olive oil, and garlic. My Couchsurfing host made this dish for me the first night I arrived in Rome, and it instantly became one of my favorite food memories from that trip.

I’m not normally too into bacon, pancetta, or really, pork at all, but it is very evident that this makes the dish. The pasta was also tossed in grease from the pancetta for even more flavor. This dish is very popular in Italy, especially in Rome.

2. Grilled Calamari

If you’re unfamiliar, calamari is squid— another food I’m not normally fond of. Living in America, I never even thought of the possibility of calamari being grilled. I’ve only ever seen it fried.

A friend I was with at L’isola Ristorante in Rome encouraged me to try the dish. It didn’t even look like the calamari I’d seen. It was served whole instead of cut into rings. Had he not told me, I would’ve never guessed I was being served calamari.

Being in a new place, I figured when in Rome (literally), so I squeezed some lemon juice on it and gave it a try. And oh my gosh! It was beyond good.

I’m hoping this popular food in Italy finds a way to become popular over here in the States. After years of searching, I finally found an amazing restaurant in Florida called Pia’s in Gulfport that serves it this way!

3. Pizza

Okay, duh. But you can’t just try it once here. There are nearly 10 different styles—don’t you think it’s only right you try them all to determine which you like best?

When going to a pizza place in Rome that only sold whole pizzas, I was a little concerned. However, the pizza here was so extremely thin that if you folded it up, it’d pretty much equate to a slice! And they don’t skimp on the toppings here.

I got a pizza near the Trevi Fountain at Piccolo Buco that was very thin in the middle but had a bubbly crust (this kind was my favorite!). The moral of the story: don’t just try one slice of pizza here and think you’ve had all Italy has to offer. You’re just getting started.

4. Cacio e Pepe

Cacio e Pepe means cheese and pepper. It’s another pasta dish, of course, and it’s so simple, yet so delicious. It’s interesting (maybe it’s just me), but all my life, whenever I’ve made a pasta dish, I like a decent amount of sauce.

I don’t want to be able to see the color of the noodles. I want them coated. But Italian pasta dishes are so much lighter when it comes to what’s on the pasta. The ingredients are simple, but the flavor is so good, they make you realize you really don’t need all that sauce.

5. Gelato

Italian ice cream is another given. I’m sure you already know gelato is one of the most popular foods in Italy. I must’ve had a gelato a day while in Italy. There are so many flavors, the options seem to be endless!! Each place has its own selection, so don’t be shy about asking to sample before committing to a flavor.

Rice pudding and tiramisu seemed to be popular flavors in Italy at the time I went. Tiramisu I enjoyed, but rice pudding was not my thing. If you’re in Rome, Giolitti is a classic gelato stop and worth checking out.

6. Limoncello

Limoncello is an Italian liqueur traditionally served after dinner as a digestivo. It is made from lemon zest, water, alcohol, and sugar. The lemons used to make limoncello aren’t just any lemons, though—they are Sorrento lemons. I had no clue lemons could even get as big as they do in Sorrento; they were the size of my head!

You can find limoncello anywhere in Italy, but if you go to Sorrento, you have to visit Limonoro Sorrento! You’re swept away by a couple of lighthearted, playful Italian men the second you walk in. Every time you turn, someone is presenting you with another sample of some sort.

They don’t just stop at limoncello. They also offer lemon cream (my personal favorite), meloncello, sugared almonds, chocolate-covered coffee beans, chocolate-covered pistachios, chocolate-covered candied lemon and orange rinds—the list goes on.

They give you so many free samples, and everything is so good that there’s no way to leave empty-handed. They have beautiful glass bottles for the liqueurs, but if you want to bring some home with you, they also have travel-safe plastic bottle options as well. I definitely brought home a few!

7. Gnocchi

Gnocchi are like little Italian dumplings! Who doesn’t love dumplings? You can dress these guys up any way you like! Italian restaurants normally know what they’re doing, but if the dumplings come with a rich cheese sauce and you prefer a tomato-based sauce or want something lighter (like butter and herbs, for example), then request it, they are typically very accommodating.

No matter what sauce you enjoy, I am sure it’s going to taste delicious on these little guys.

8. Lasagna

I am going to give you very specific instructions for this one. If you are staying in Florence, take this Tuscany day trip. You’ll go to the hills of Chianti for a Tuscan lunch, and I hope they are still serving their homemade, family-recipe lasagna.

It was the best lasagna I have ever had! I was actually in shock at how good it was. I didn’t think it could get any better, but after one bite, they came around and poured truffle oil on top of it. After coming home, I tried to replicate the recipe, but I failed miserably.

I honestly don’t know if I would expect lasagna to be on my list of popular foods in Italy normally, but after this experience, it had to be.

9. Cappuccino

If you’re a coffee lover like me, grabbing a cappuccino in Italy is a must. After all, this is where it was invented!

I’ll admit, I typically gravitate toward flavored lattes at home. So when I started asking cafes what flavor options they had and was met with blank, slightly confused stares, it was definitely a bit of culture shock. I quickly realized that in Italy, the coffee speaks for itself.

Italians take a lot of pride in crafting high-quality coffee, and after trying a few cappuccinos, I completely understood why they don’t feel the need to cover it up with flavored syrups.

Many cafes dust the top with a little cocoa powder and serve it alongside white and brown sugar, so you can sweeten it to your liking. I personally loved adding a little brown sugar. And as a fun bonus, several cafes even served my cappuccino with a small cookie or sweet treat on the side, which always made the experience feel a little extra special.

10. Wine

Duh, right? It’s only one of Italy’s major food groups. Before visiting Italy, I was a little put off by wine. I seemed to get the worst headaches every time I drank it.

When traveling through Italy, they didn’t have many liquor options, so it was pretty much wine, beer, or limoncello, so I went with wine. And ya know what? I didn’t have headaches the next day! It was one of the many surprising things I discovered during my European travels.

So, I know what you may be thinking: “Oh, because they don’t have sulfites in their wine!”

I thought that too, but in doing a little research, it turns out sulfites are a natural byproduct of winemaking. In Italy, it doesn’t state on the bottles “contains sulfites,” because they are not required to (in the US, however, we are).

Some winemakers do add more than the naturally occurring to help preserve the wine. While there still seems to be some controversy on what the cause of headaches in American wine and the lack thereof in European versions are, most are in agreement that sulfites are not the culprit. If you’re a real wino, you may be interested in this fun post I found that debunks some wine myths!

A Few Tips for Trying Italy’s Famous Foods

• Venture away from the main tourist areas when you can: Some of the best meals I had were just a few streets away from the busiest attractions.
• Be cautious of restaurants with giant menus covered in photos: While there are always exceptions, this is often a sign that a restaurant caters more to tourists than authentic Italian cuisine.
• Do a little research before choosing a restaurant: Reading recent reviews or saving recommendations ahead of time can make a huge difference.
• Ask locals where they like to eat: Whether it’s your hotel host, Airbnb host, or a shop owner, locals usually know the best hidden gems.
• Don’t skip the simple spots: One of my favorite pasta meals in Italy came from Pastificio Guerra, a tiny takeaway shop near the Spanish Steps in Rome. They offer just two pasta dishes each day, and for only €5, you get a generous container of freshly made pasta. There isn’t any seating—you simply grab your food and enjoy it while exploring the city. It ended up being one of my favorite meals of the trip.
• Remember that great food can still be found in touristy areas: The key isn’t avoiding them altogether—it’s knowing how to spot quality restaurants and doing a little research beforehand.

Are You Ready to Experience These Iconic Dishes That Italy Is Famous For?

Italy is known for its beautiful scenery and incredible history, but the food is what keeps me dreaming about going back. From fresh pasta and wood-fired pizza to creamy gelato and fresh seafood, some of my favorite travel memories happened around the table.

Of course, this list is just scratching the surface. If I missed one of your favorite Italian dishes, let me know in the comments! I’m already making a list for my next trip.

Before you go, be sure to follow me on Insta @guidedbydestiny and check out some of my other Europe posts:

Amazing Cafes in Krakow, Poland

2-Week Central Europe Itinerary

How to Travel on a Budget