1. Condiments: That's right, you heard me -- condiments. Ranch dressing, BBQ sauce, honey mustard, etc. The Italians limit themselves to oil and vinegar on the salads (with popular variations including lemon juice) and ketchup/mayo/mustard on other food items. I regularly bring BBQ sauce and Ranch dressing back to Italy with me.
2. Delicious Chinese/Mexican/Indian restaurants. Are there cultural restaurants in Italy? Yes. Are they reliably delicious? No. And therefore, no one will go to them with me (expect Charlotte!) [As an aside, I do enjoy the deliciousness of the many, many kebab shops in Italy.]
3. 24-Hour Convenience. There will always be a convenience store, grocery store, or breakfast-food restaurant open somewhere. In Italy? Not so. In fact, finding something open after 8pm can prove tricky.
4. Kroger. My Kroger with its Starbucks, free samples, bread-cutting machine, chocolate fountain, large wine selection, and sushi bar.
5. Buffets. Italy is close to France...why aren't buffets more popular?
6. Sweets. As is to be expected, the flavor of the sweets (dolce) in Italy tastes different from those of America. The sweets are not quite as sweet, and they favor the hazelnut flavorings. Also, the icing is not the butter-sugar icing to which I am accustomed (and adore), and a large portion of their cakes have fruit and gel on top of them. Those are what pies are for!
7. Diet food options. Sugar-free fudge pops! Low-fat ... anything! Whole wheat bread, fajitas, bagels, chips. Double-churned ice cream. Every diet soda variation.
8. Free refills. In Italy, if you get a pop -- even from the tap -- you pay at least 2Euros for a can's worth. I don't know if they haven't yet discovered the wonder of the syrup-pop-setup, but they should get on that. Here you can get a pop for a buck and refill till your heart's content!
9. Cheeses. Don't get me wrong -- Italy has some amazing cheese. But they are missing cheddar, Monteray-Jack, and Colby, and therefore, so do I.
10. My mom's cooking. Obvious.
I cried a little! And a very small part of me never wants to go to Italy now lol.
ReplyDeleteI want to mail you some bacon ranch immediately. My heart aches.
I always missed diners, you know, stacks of pancakes, bacon, and unlimited coffee... however, that chinese food is soo good! Octopus noodles!
ReplyDeleteUm, I didn't know my cousin read your blog. LOL. I don't even recall you guys meeting, though I am not surprised. :P
ReplyDeleteI have a list of reasons Canada sucks. It is surprisingly similar to your list. I will put it on FB soon I guess. Yeah Amurica!
1. When I was in Germany, I remember being appalled at having to pay for ketchup packets (~0.15 euros) in a cafeteria.
ReplyDelete2. I was a little confused because of the prevalence of Mexican places in Germany (Essen/Dusseldorf area). None of them were great and certainly not really "authentic". The chinese places were more "authentic" (being staffed by people who spoke Mandarin rather than the local German teenagers) but were thoroughly "meh" and also generally 'nicer' restaurants. The delicious delicious doner/kebab providers were the local cheap and quality foods.
Conclusion: Silly Europeans.
Allie: Italy is definitely worth a visit, despite the obvious food handicaps. (In fact, you can come stay with me, especially if you bring the promised bacon ranch!) I just wouldn't put it on the list of permanent transfers.
ReplyDeleteLaurel: Your cuz and I met more than once! And I'm surprised that Canada's Suck List would be similar to Italy's...it's so close to the US! They have no excuse!
Charlotte: You are correct about the diners/pancakes. They probably should have made the list...I actually brought back pancake mix with me this time, but -- doh! -- forgot the syrup!
Alex: Paying for condiments is wrong. It's WRONG!