Rick Steves Italy for Food Lovers

Rick Steves has been an enduringly popular travel authority for many years. Here he teams up with the venerably insightful Fred Plotkin to tell you where and how to eat well in Italy.

Plotkin’s own Italian food guides are lamentably out-of-print, so we’re very pleased to see him contributing to this almost pocket-size, full-color, 450+ page book. There’s even a fold-out map to help you understand what each region of the country is famous for.

After a quick tour of fundamentals, such as understanding different types of Italian restaurants as well as differences in service, the book introduces readers to common and notable foods. If your only exposure to Italian cooking has been outside Italy, this can be quite useful.

The bulk of the book is divided into chapters which address each of the major regions, characterizing their food and drink so that you know what to seek out. This section does not include recommendations of specific establishments.

For help in choosing eating spots the book offers a list of 100 notable places with brief descriptions of why you might like them. There’s also a glossary in case you find yourself wondering if you would enjoy sgombro or facile da bere.

Practical if not exhaustive.

Paperback. Color photos and maps throughout.