Ordering This Popular American Dish Is Bound To Get You Weird Looks In Italian Restaurants

Imagine yourself confidently walking into a restaurant in Bologna, one of the best places to visit in Italy if you want to enjoy all kinds of delicious, locally made food. After finding one of the best authentic restaurants in Italy, you sit down, check the menu, and, with all the boldness in the world, place an order. What did you just order? Spaghetti Bolognese! The waiter suddenly pauses, with a raised eyebrow, asking you to repeat the order. You feel some awkwardness and wonder to yourself, "Isn't this one of the famous dishes in Italy?"

Well, unfortunately, that is not the case. "Spaghetti Bolognese" might be a popular name in so many other countries including the U.S., but in Italy, the dish doesn't really exist. The food you so much enjoy back at home is a result of culinary experiments, not a local food. And looking for it in Italy is like looking for stars at noon: It's going to take you forever to find. Along with other tips for navigating Italy's dining culture, learning about authentic Italian dishes and their names will help you avoid getting weird looks while in the country.

Spaghetti Bolognese has earned a place as a timeless comfort food because of its rich flavors and soothing taste. And that is why it's a beloved dish across households and restaurants. Although the pasta dish has made many people around the world fall in love with it, its origins are quite fascinating. The famous spaghetti Bolognese has its roots in Bologna, a city in the northern part of Italy. There, the sauce is called "ragù alla Bolognese." In its original form, the rich meat sauce was paired with tagliatelle, a pasta made like ribbon, which dates back hundreds of years.

Once the dish traveled outside Italy, so many things changed. Spaghetti, being cheaper and more common — especially in the U.S. and the U.K.— took the place of tagliatelle, giving rise to the version most people know today. Ever since then, spaghetti Bolognese has become the choice of many people. Still, this version isn't typical within Italy's borders.

Asking for spaghetti Bolognese will sound awkward because spaghetti is seen as being too tiny and slippery to carry the heavy, meat-filled ragù. So, if you want to enjoy Italy like a local, ask for tagliatelle al ragù The ragù is made with meat, tomatoes, onion, carrots, and some other ingredients, depending on your preferences and the chef. It's a comforting meal to have, largely different from the one you might be used to.

Carefully choosing what to eat is one of the genius tips to avoid eating like a tourist in Italy that Rick Steve proposes. So when you're in Italy, don't ask for spaghetti Bolognese. Choose a more authentic dish like tagliatelle al ragù. This will not only save you from uncomfortable stares but also open your eyes to the beauty of Italian cooking. Remember, food in Italy is deeply tied to region and culture. And that's why, when tourists insist on "spaghetti Bolognese," it may be seen as a misrepresentation of Bologna's proud culinary heritage. To you, the request may be innocent, but to the Italians, the request is fundamentally off.