#italian-cuisine

#italian-cuisine

The "best" meatballs do not exist, at least according to Elvira, who is not technically a nonna. Though she did fit a particular American idea of the "nonna" with her stern rebukes about the tiny departures I took from her meatball recipe. She had hurried over to her daughter's friend's home on a Thursday night with short notice when she learned that a journalist would be in Rome trying to find the absolute best way to make Roman-style meatballs.

Depending on what door you use and when you get there, Dimo's can be a pizzeria, a deli, a supper club, or a sit-down Italian restaurant. Splitting focus like that usually leads to compromises on quality, but Dimo's inexplicably excels in every department. Dimo's Italian Specialties (the door on the right) operates in deli mode from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday, and switches to a dinner menu starting at 5:30 p.m. Thursday through Sunday.

How does a suburban mainstay keep things fresh after over a decade? Rebrand, renovate, and double down on private events. Burlington's Tuscan Kitchen reopens on February 20 as Sorella, "the cool younger sister" of the previous restaurant, says owner Joe Faro. With a lighter, modernized design, bigger bar, and more space for parties, it's "an energized, contemporary look" at what Faro's growing Italian-food empire, Tuscan Brands, is today.

Italian cuisine is among the most famous in the world, and for good reason. Iconic dishes like pizza and pasta are fan favorites no matter where you are in the world. And these two categories of Italian food in particular showcase the most classic Italian sauce, red sauce. Red sauce can be a stewed tomato sauce or a simple marinara sauce. While traditional recipes uphold strict standards that ban certain ingredients, an unconventional yet gourmet upgrade to Italian tomato sauces is balsamic vinegar.

In 2024, DC got a slew of thrilling, genre-busting restaurants, from Dōgon to Pascual to La' Shukran to Moon Rabbit. This past year was different: more safe, less boundary-pushing. Major openings included copies and spinoffs of existing restaurants (Chai Pani, Lucky Danger) and Stephen Starr's revamp of the century-old Occidental. And 2025 closed out with two flashy new steak spots from big restaurant groups. Not exactly groundbreaking.

Often called 'nonna-stalgia,' this cozy trend encourages diners to step out of their fast-paced lives for old-fashioned, slow-cooked family recipes made with simple ingredients - often served on charmingly mismatched dinnerware in warm settings that remind them of simpler times,

Recently, Beretta had a makeover; both the interior and its menu got spiffed up, and the changes are notable. From dark wood and leather to bright gold tones with cherry accents, huge, abstract murals, mod red wire-framed lamps, Beretta has a fresh, modern vibe that manages to feel welcoming to all ages, in no small part due to its staff.

Typically made from cow's milk, it's produced by heating whey - a common byproduct of other cheesemaking processes. Hence, the word "ricotta" translates to "recooked" in English. When the whey is heated and acidified, it forms the soft, fine curds that are so characteristic of ricotta, resulting in a delicate, airy cheese that's creamy yet relatively low in fat. You can even make your own ricotta at home by curdling boiled milk with lemon juice and then straining the mixture through a cheesecloth.

In the United States, geography and location have a lot to do with the shape of local culture, like accents, architecture, and especially food. Costal environments like the Pacific Northwest and New England tend to lean heavily in to their abundance of oysters, crab, and lobster, while in landlocked areas like Colorado and Kansas, you're more likely to see meat-based cuisine focused on beef and even bison and elk. Knowing how much local foods are shaped by the proximity of ingredients, it's a surprise that some Americans don't translate this idea to other countries, especially ones famous for their cuisine.

We may receive a commission on purchases made from links. When it comes to blurring the line between food and art, few cuisines achieve that quite like Italian. A seemingly endless variety of pastas and sauces combine to create plates that are like a hug passed through the generations, and there's no denying that the worst day can be made a little bit better with a hearty Italian meal.

No longer is the preferred ski resort chosen based on the perfect piste - destinations are chosen based on crowd, accommodations, shopping opportunities, and, more and more often, restaurants. Throwing its hat into Aspen's hospitality ring is beloved NYC spot Marea, which is opening at the St Regis Aspen Resort on December 22. Marea at The Snow Lodge marks the restaurant's third outpost, following on from the successes of Marea Beverly Hills in 2024 and the launch of the first-ever Marea just off Central Park back in 2009.

For 35 years, Palio has been a fixture in San Francisco's Financial District, an Italian restaurant built on family legacy, craft, and the deep-rooted belief that dining is about far more than food. Owner Martino DiGrande, son of an immigrant Italian restaurateur, says he was raised with hospitality in his DNA. As he puts it, "when someone walks in the restaurant, I view it like they're walking into my home."

When Alleva Dairy, the oldest cheese shop in the U.S., was forced to close its Little Italy location after 130 years, New Yorkers were outraged. The legendary shop had all but defined its corner of Mulberry and Grand Streets, and its loss was mourned both in person and online, with many frustrated by the financial struggles and court battles the business had faced.

If you've only ever wanted to eat at Italian restaurants, make pasta almost every day for dinner, and entertain Italian vacations regardless of season, much to the chagrin of your over-saturated friends and family, then you're about to feel extremely vindicated: Italian cooking has been officially recognized an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO. The announcement was made on Wednesday, December 10, during the cultural organization's assembly in Delhi.

The historic, narrow streets are lined with local and family-owned businesses. You'll find pizza and pasta places aplenty, plus Italian regional specialities on many menus, and scores of traditional Italian desserts, too. There are multiple food tours here in the North End, and both tourists and locals line the sidewalks to get into must-try spots. However, most people don't mind waiting around because the area is incredibly charming.

Ziggy's Roman Cafe debuted on Thursday, Nov. 13, 2025, at 15 Main St. in the heart of DUMBO, Brooklyn offering high-quality Italian cuisine and an elevated ambiance designated for any day of the week. Founders Helen Zhang, a former restaurant publicist with 15 years of experience in hospitality public relations, and Igor Hadzismajovic, co-founder of Employees Only cocktail bar, envisioned a local restaurant where children are welcome to enjoy a meal during the day and adults can meet friends for drinks in the evening.