Uncle Larry Adventures

Travel with Larry & Sally

Best Vacation Spots for Italian Food Around the World

Italian food travels. Start in Italy's regions, then follow it to cities where Italian families built new traditions. For each stop you get the dishes to try, why the place matters, and, where we could confirm it on the official site, a resort known for Italian cooking. Larry and Sally add their notes. They're jokes, not reviews.

In Italy

Italy

Amalfi Coast & Positano

Lemons, tomatoes and seafood shape the cooking of this steep stretch of Campania coastline.

Dishes to try

  • Pasta al pomodoro
  • Grilled local fish
  • Lemon desserts
  • Babà

Hotel or resort with confirmed Italian dining

Le Sirenuse · Positano

La Sponda describes cuisine inspired by Naples and the Gulf, using fresh, seasonal local ingredients.

Address: Via Cristoforo Colombo 30, 84017 Positano (SA), Italy

Official websiteFood offering & sourceAddress sourceMap

Published food prices

  • La Sponda minimum spend (not a fixed menu): €160 per person

    The booking page states a minimum spend, not an all-inclusive meal price. Confirm applicable booking terms and extras with the restaurant.

    Official price source

Room rates: Date- and room-dependent; check the official website for your stay. Food prices are not accommodation rates.

Official sources checked . Menus, availability and prices can change; confirm before booking. Not a review or a paid placement.

Larry: “I climbed four hundred steps for a plate of pasta. Worth it. I'd climb four hundred more if they carried me.”

Sally: “I booked the dinner sixty days out. Larry booked a nap.”

Full guide →

Italy

Puglia

The heel of the boot is known for olive groves, durum-wheat pasta and fresh cheeses.

Dishes to try

  • Orecchiette with greens
  • Burrata
  • Focaccia barese
  • Olive oil tastings

Hotel or resort with confirmed Italian dining

Borgo Egnazia · Savelletri di Fasano

La Frasca is its Apulian trattoria serving traditional regional dishes; the property also describes Puglian cooking experiences.

Address: Strada Comunale Egnazia, 72015 Savelletri (BR), Italy

Official websiteFood offering & sourceAddress sourceMap

Published food prices

No fixed food or class price verified. Ask the property for its current menu or quote.

Room rates: Date- and room-dependent; check the official website for your stay. Food prices are not accommodation rates.

Official sources checked . Menus, availability and prices can change; confirm before booking. Not a review or a paid placement.

Larry: “Little ears of pasta. Finally, a pasta that listens to me.”

Sally: “I signed us up for the cooking class. Larry signed up for the eating part.”

Full guide →

Italy

Tuscan countryside

Hill-town cooking built on bread, beans, olive oil and the region's well-known red wines.

Dishes to try

  • Ribollita
  • Pici
  • Bistecca alla fiorentina
  • Chianti and Brunello

Hotel or resort with confirmed Italian dining

Castello di Casole, A Belmond Hotel · Casole d'Elsa

Tosca offers seasonal tasting menus inspired by local heritage; the property also describes classes in traditional Tuscan dishes and pasta.

Address: Località Querceto, 53031 Casole d'Elsa, Siena, Italy

Official websiteFood offering & sourceAddress sourceMap

Published food prices

No fixed food or class price verified. Ask the property for its current menu or quote.

Room rates: Date- and room-dependent; check the official website for your stay. Food prices are not accommodation rates.

Official sources checked . Menus, availability and prices can change; confirm before booking. Not a review or a paid placement.

Larry: “In Tuscany they put bread in the soup. My kind of people.”

Sally: “We came for the vineyards. Larry came for the steak that weighs as much as a vineyard.”

Full guide →

Italy

Montalcino & Val d'Orcia

A southern Tuscan wine area tied to Brunello, with truffle season in autumn.

Dishes to try

  • Truffle dishes in season
  • Pecorino
  • Brunello di Montalcino

Hotel or resort with confirmed Italian dining

Castiglion del Bosco, A Rosewood Hotel · Montalcino

La Canonica's cooking school teaches Italian and Tuscan specialties. Osteria La Canonica's published lunch menu includes pici with Valdichiana aglione sauce and pappardelle with wild-boar ragù.

Address: Località Castiglion del Bosco, 53024 Montalcino (Siena), Italy

Official websiteFood offering & sourceAddress sourceMap

Published food prices

  • Osteria La Canonica pici with Valdichiana aglione sauce: €30 per dish

    Published 2026 lunch menu. Tax and service included; not a full meal or cooking-class price. Confirm the current menu.

    Official price source

  • Osteria La Canonica pappardelle with wild-boar ragù: €35 per dish

    Published 2026 lunch menu. Tax and service included; not a full meal or cooking-class price. Confirm the current menu.

    Official price source

Room rates: Date- and room-dependent; check the official website for your stay. Food prices are not accommodation rates.

Official sources checked . Menus, availability and prices can change; confirm before booking. Not a review or a paid placement.

Larry: “A dog found a truffle. I found the dog's lunch.”

Sally: “Larry wanted to fly over the vineyards. I wanted him to land in one.”

Full guide →

Italy

Lake Como

Lombardy lake cooking leans on rice, polenta and freshwater fish.

Dishes to try

  • Risotto with lake fish
  • Polenta
  • Missoltini (dried lake fish)

Hotel or resort with confirmed Italian dining

Villa d'Este · Cernobbio

Veranda describes Italian-rooted cuisine using seasonal ingredients from sea, land and lake. Its published summer tasting menu includes pappa al pomodoro and burrata.

Address: Via Regina 40, Cernobbio (CO), Italy

Official websiteFood offering & sourceAddress sourceMap

Published food prices

  • Veranda tasting menu — published summer 2026: €210 per person

    Five-course summer 2026 menu, not a confirmed autumn offer. Beverages excluded; served for the entire table. Confirm current menu and any tax/service terms.

    Official price source

  • Veranda tasting menu with wine pairing — published summer 2026: €320 per person

    Summer 2026 menu with wine pairing, not a confirmed autumn offer. Served for the entire table. Confirm current menu and any tax/service terms.

    Official price source

Room rates: Date- and room-dependent; check the official website for your stay. Food prices are not accommodation rates.

Official sources checked . Menus, availability and prices can change; confirm before booking. Not a review or a paid placement.

Larry: “I tried to order sausage on the boat. The captain said no. We are no longer friends.”

Sally: “I packed for elegance. Larry packed a grill.”

Full guide →

Italy

Venice

Small bar snacks, lagoon seafood and sweet-sour dishes define a classic Venetian food day.

Dishes to try

  • Cicchetti
  • Sarde in saor
  • Risotto al nero di seppia
  • Bellini

Hotel or resort with confirmed Italian dining

Hotel Cipriani, A Belmond Hotel · Giudecca, Venice

ORO describes cuisine rooted in Venetian traditions and lagoon ingredients. Cip's Club's October 2026 menu lists Venetian-style liver with polenta and pasta-and-bean soup.

Address: Giudecca 10, 30133 Venice, Italy

Official websiteFood offering & sourceAddress sourceMap

Published food prices

  • Cip's Club Venetian-style veal liver with polenta: €54 per dish

    October 2026 à la carte dinner menu. Service and VAT included; not an ORO tasting-menu price.

    Official price source

  • Cip's Club pasta-and-bean soup with Treviso radicchio: €36 per dish

    October 2026 à la carte dinner menu. Service and VAT included; not an ORO tasting-menu price.

    Official price source

Room rates: Date- and room-dependent; check the official website for your stay. Food prices are not accommodation rates.

Official sources checked . Menus, availability and prices can change; confirm before booking. Not a review or a paid placement.

Larry: “Cicchetti means little snacks. I had a lot of little snacks. That's a big snack.”

Sally: “Larry fed the pigeons. Then the pigeons fed Larry.”

Full guide →

Italy

Sicily & Taormina

Sicilian cooking mixes citrus, almonds, eggplant and seafood from many centuries of trade.

Dishes to try

  • Arancini
  • Pasta alla Norma
  • Cannoli
  • Granita

Hotel or resort with confirmed Italian dining

San Domenico Palace, Taormina, A Four Seasons Hotel · Taormina

Anciovi serves Sicilian and Mediterranean specialties; its dinner menu lists maccheroncelli alla Norma and sweet-and-sour vegetable caponata.

Address: Piazza San Domenico 5, 98039 Taormina, Italy

Official websiteFood offering & sourceAddress sourceMap

Published food prices

  • Anciovi maccheroncelli pasta, Norma style: €40 per dish

    Undated official à la carte dinner menu checked 2026-10-17. No tax/service terms verified; confirm the final price with the hotel.

    Official price source

  • Anciovi sweet-and-sour vegetable caponata: €28 per dish

    Undated official à la carte dinner menu checked 2026-10-17. No tax/service terms verified; confirm the final price with the hotel.

    Official price source

Room rates: Date- and room-dependent; check the official website for your stay. Food prices are not accommodation rates.

Official sources checked . Menus, availability and prices can change; confirm before booking. Not a review or a paid placement.

Larry: “Granita for breakfast. Sicily understands me.”

Sally: “I wanted to see Mount Etna. Larry wanted to cook on it.”

Full guide →

Italy

Sardinia & Costa Smeralda

Island cooking with its own pasta shapes, flatbreads and roast pork traditions.

Dishes to try

  • Culurgiones
  • Malloreddus
  • Pane carasau
  • Porceddu

Hotel or resort with confirmed Italian dining

Hotel Cala di Volpe, a Luxury Collection Hotel · Costa Smeralda

Cala di Volpe Barbecue describes local fish, meat, Sardinian delicacies and homemade pasta; Le Grand interprets Sardinian flavors.

Address: Costa Smeralda, Porto Cervo, 07020, Italy

Official websiteFood offering & sourceAddress sourceMap

Published food prices

No fixed food or class price verified. Ask the property for its current menu or quote.

Room rates: Date- and room-dependent; check the official website for your stay. Food prices are not accommodation rates.

Official sources checked . Menus, availability and prices can change; confirm before booking. Not a review or a paid placement.

Larry: “The water's emerald. The pork's golden. I'm sunburnt.”

Sally: “I picked the beach. Larry picked the barbecue next to the beach.”

Full guide →

Italy

Bologna & Emilia-Romagna

Often called one of Italy's richest food regions, known for fresh egg pasta and cured meats.

Dishes to try

  • Tagliatelle al ragù
  • Tortellini in brodo
  • Mortadella
  • Parmigiano Reggiano

Larry: “They call Bologna 'the fat one.' I felt seen.”

Sally: “Larry took a tour of a cheese warehouse and tried to adopt a wheel.”

Full guide →

Italy

Naples

Widely associated with modern pizza and a strong street-food and coffee culture.

Dishes to try

  • Pizza napoletana
  • Sfogliatella
  • Ragù napoletano
  • Espresso

Larry: “In Naples the pizza is folded. So was I, after six of them.”

Sally: “I planned three museums. We saw three pizzerias.”

Full guide →

North America

USA

New York City

Neighborhoods like Arthur Avenue in the Bronx and Little Italy keep Italian-American food front and center.

Dishes to try

  • Sausage and peppers at street feasts
  • Chicken parm
  • Slice pizza
  • Cannoli

Larry: “The San Gennaro feast is basically my family reunion, except everyone's nicer.”

Sally: “Larry walked forty blocks for a sandwich. Then took a cab back for another.”

Full guide →

Canada

Toronto

College Street's Little Italy and Corso Italia reflect a large Italian-Canadian community.

Dishes to try

  • Veal sandwiches
  • Little Italy pizzerias
  • Bakery pastries

Larry: “A veal sandwich big enough to need its own passport.”

Sally: “It was minus ten. Larry still wanted gelato.”

Full guide →

USA

Chicago

Taylor Street and other historic Italian neighborhoods helped shape the city's sandwich and pizza styles.

Dishes to try

  • Italian beef sandwich
  • Deep-dish and tavern-style pizza
  • Italian ice

Larry: “Dipped, hot, with peppers. The sandwich is wetter than I am after a Bears game.”

Sally: “Larry ordered it 'juicy.' Then he needed a new shirt.”

Full guide →

USA

Philadelphia

South Philadelphia's Italian Market is one of the oldest outdoor markets in the country.

Dishes to try

  • Roast pork sandwich with broccoli rabe
  • Water ice
  • Tomato pie

Larry: “Everyone argues about cheesesteaks. Meanwhile I'm eating the roast pork. Quietly. Mostly.”

Sally: “Larry tried to haggle at the market. They haggled back harder.”

Full guide →

USA

Boston's North End

One of the country's oldest Italian-American neighborhoods, with summer religious feasts and bakeries.

Dishes to try

  • Cannoli
  • Pizza
  • Red-sauce pasta
  • Summer saint feasts

Larry: “Two bakeries, two cannoli lines, one Larry. Math wins.”

Sally: “I wanted the Freedom Trail. Larry wanted the cannoli trail.”

Full guide →

Canada

Montreal

Montreal's Little Italy sits beside Jean-Talon Market, one of the city's best-known food markets.

Dishes to try

  • Market produce at Jean-Talon
  • Espresso
  • Italian bakeries

Larry: “Bonjour, buongiorno, where's the sausage. I'm trilingual now.”

Sally: “I bought vegetables at the market. Larry bought six kinds of cheese and called them vegetables.”

Full guide →

South America

Argentina

Buenos Aires

Large waves of Italian immigration left a lasting mark on the city's pizza, pasta and gelato.

Dishes to try

  • Pizza al molde
  • Fugazzeta
  • Fainá
  • Ñoquis on the 29th

Larry: “They put a chickpea pancake on top of the pizza. Genius. Dangerous genius.”

Sally: “I learned the tango. Larry learned where the gelato shop was.”

Full guide →

Brazil

São Paulo

Home to one of the world's largest Italian-descended communities, with neighborhoods like Bixiga.

Dishes to try

  • São Paulo-style pizza
  • Mortadella sandwich
  • Cantina pasta

Larry: “A mortadella sandwich taller than my hat. I wore it as a hat.”

Sally: “Larry asked for 'a little' mortadella. They do not know that phrase.”

Full guide →

Oceania

Australia

Melbourne

Post-war Italian migration helped shape Carlton's Lygon Street and the city's coffee habits.

Dishes to try

  • Espresso bar culture
  • Pasta on Lygon Street
  • Gelato

Larry: “They drink coffee upside down here. Or maybe I was upside down.”

Sally: “We flew fourteen hours. Larry's first words were 'where's the cannoli.'”

Full guide →

Australia

Sydney

Leichhardt in Sydney's inner west is known as the city's Little Italy.

Dishes to try

  • Pasta and pizza in Leichhardt
  • Espresso
  • Gelato

Larry: “Upside-down country, right-side-up pasta.”

Sally: “Larry wanted to surf. Larry wanted lunch more.”

Full guide →

Europe

United Kingdom

London

Clerkenwell was once known as London's Little Italy, and Soho has long-running Italian cafés and delis.

Dishes to try

  • Espresso bars in Soho
  • Fresh pasta
  • Italian delis

Larry: “I asked for tea with my cannoli. They looked at me like I'd insulted both countries.”

Sally: “Larry minded the gap. Then he minded the gelato.”

Full guide →

Resort details were checked on official websites in October 2026 and can change, so confirm before booking. Mentions are not paid placements or reviews. Larry and Sally's adventures are fictional short films, and their notes are in character.

Questions

Where is the best place in the world for Italian food?
Italy itself, region by region: Naples for pizza, Bologna for fresh egg pasta, Sicily for street food and sweets. Outside Italy, New York, Chicago, Philadelphia, Buenos Aires, São Paulo, Toronto, Montreal, London, Melbourne and Sydney have strong Italian communities and food traditions.
Which resorts are known for Italian food?
This guide lists resorts whose own websites describe Italian cooking classes or regional dining, such as Borgo Egnazia in Puglia, Castello di Casole in Tuscany and Le Sirenuse in Positano. Check each official site for current details.
Are these restaurant or resort reviews?
No. They're research-based travel ideas. Larry and Sally's notes are in-character jokes, not claims that they visited.
Are the listed prices hotel room rates?
No. Numeric prices are identified food or cooking-class prices from official sources. Room rates depend on dates, room and occupancy; use the official hotel website for a stay quote. Where no fixed food price was verified, we say so.
Which city outside Italy has the most Italian influence on its food?
Buenos Aires and São Paulo are often cited because of large historic Italian immigration; New York's Italian-American food is the best known in North America.

Planning Italy in depth? See Italian vacation spots and where to eat in Italy.

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