well, you are right to be careful!

It's true that most restaurants in Europe don't post their menu prices online, and Frommer's is absolutely unreliable in terms of pricing. We met up with some friends a few years ago in Rome at a place Frommer's designated as 3 out of 5 dollar signs expensive...when we arrived, the waiters were in tuxedos (a rarity for Italy), and when we were sat, the menus of the women had no prices. The men at the table clearly began to sweat, as appartently the main courses were no less than 38 Euros each, and the primi courses around 25 euros apiece...needless to say, after a fair bit of fanfare, threats of police intervention (long but hilarious story) and a few "I'm just an opera singer" tear-filled mea culpas, we left. Thanks, Frommer's! Plus, their information is often woefully out of date, with some places clearly off their radar for years, but still garnering phenomenal reviews for iffy food.

For food in Italy, a Michelin guide is your bible, particularly if you care about quality and price. Search for restaurants marked as inexpensive with the little Bon Gusto Michelin man at the side - he never did us wrong(we spent about 6 weeks travelling in Italy altogether in 2008). I fully recommend buying one, but you can also just sit for a few hours in a Barnes and Noble to make notes.