One of the things I'm finding really frustrating as my holiday planning continues is that almost none of the Italian restaurant Web sites that post menus actually include PRICES in those online menus.

I'm trying to get some idea of what food is actually costing these days in Rome and Venice. I don't trust any of the Fodors/Frommers type guidebooks, and one finds very few actual euro figures in posts on TripAdvisor and similar sites - just "it was reasonable" or "it was inexpensive" type postings. Well, we all know that one man's reasonable or inexpensive is another's "no way in hell".

So those who have been in Rome, Venice, Florence, etc. recently what's the deal? In the typical pizzeria or inexpensive trattoria, what can one expect to pay for, say, a bowl of pasta bolognese, a saltimbocca, or a full prix fixe type meal?

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Karen Mercedes - contralto
singwiththespirit [at] yahoo [dot] com
http://artfuljesus.0catch.com/karenmercedes.html

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 Thanks, Frommer's! Plus, their information is often woefully out of date, with some places clearly off their radar for years, but still garnering phenomenal reviews for iffy food.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.

In Italy, they add an additional service charge which adds to the price. You can only avoid it when you have your espresso at the counter.

Chowhound is usually pretty good, especially if you want good food without spending a fortune.

Houndentenor

"Get the trash off the street and back on the stage where it belongs." -- Bette Midler

I was in Venice just before Christmas this year. It was a bit more expensive than I'd thought (having lived in northern italy for a few years) but you can still get away normally for under 15 for a meal if you're careful. Primi (pasta) were probably 9-11 on average (vegetarian options). The cover is normally between 1.50 and 3 but of course you are not obliged to leave a tip so it kind of works out.

The previous poster was spot on regarding breakfast - if you order your brioche and cappuccino and stay standing at the bar, it's a lot cheaper - no cover and the price is normally cheaper as well.

A decent and cheap pizza chain in Venice is Ae Oche - there are a few of them scattered around town and they are quite good.

Have fun! (I'm jealous! )

Hubby was there just last week and paid 12 Euro for a coffee in the center of town. Ridiculous.

Your best bet is to make a point of finding where the locals eat as soon as you arrive. You'll save a bundle. Italians are very generally approachable and very happy to give advice in all matters concerning food .

Also, find out where they shop. Buying a nice piece of cheese or salami and bread for a meal comes in a lot cheaper than eating out 3 times a day even if you figure in a bottle of wine.

you can still eat cheap and great but you have to seek it out.

if you speak even a little Italian you pump the locals for information and you avoid restaurants, seeking out little mom and pop type trattorias, the kind that do not even HAVE menus, let alone post them online. What they make for the day, you eat. It is the closest to home cooking and usually excellent. last spring I had great fulls meals like this the most I spent was $25 for a truly huge Roman meal at that type of place but there was no pick of the menu. If you do not go soup to nuts you can spend less.

Also do not rule out rosticcerias and other take out options or the inevitable bread, salami, cheese picnic - these options are excellent and you can put together a full and terrific meal if you are cash short.

In Venice you have to really wander to find even good food, let alone good AND inexpensive, but it can be done. It might not be as cheap as you can find in Rome but you can find a decent meal for a decent price. There are not too many hidden gems in Venice but if you get to the back alleys you can indeed find some little places without even names posted and again with either no menus or very limited menus but good food. I found one a few blocks in from where the big ferries leave for Murano run by two older women and got a great meal for $18 which is cheap in Venice.

Another big trick in Venice is to search out the lesser known wine bars and feast on cichetti instead of a big sit down meal. The really good ones can be VERY hard to find because the locals do not like company but if you wander side streets and let you nose be your guide you can find them.

There are one or two Neapolitan type pizzerias in Venice but by and large the pizza in Venice is awful unless you go with the pan type pizza rustica which is not typically Venetian either.

I agree for breakfast you are better off at the local bar and yes, the counter is cheaper.

Very helpful info. Also a deciding factor in my vacation planning, as I'll be travelling with my mother who is not a "stand at the bar", "track down the back alley holes-in-the-wall" or "nibble at a wine bar" type...at least not for the three weeks I'm anticipating travelling with her.

I think I may save Italy for my next solo voyage, and strike out for elsewhere with la mamma.

--
Karen Mercedes - contralto
singwiththespirit [at] yahoo [dot] com
http://artfuljesus.0catch.com/karenmercedes.html