My tip for Florence is, if you're in the touristy area, cross one of the bridges and keep walking until the menus with pictures on them disappear, then it's fairly safe starting from that line.
@@fatdoi003 Yes - proximity to landmarks is not necessarily a bad thing. I've eaten fantastically and cheaply in the shadow of the Pantheon. My tell is always touts. If the restaurant does not try to herd you in, it's probably worth a gamble.
I'm from Florence and I work in tourism. The amount of times I had to tell people that Osteria Pastella is kind of a tourist-trap is incredible 😂 They go very hard with internet Ads, their SEO must really be top-notch.
I hate this kind of places as well entirely because of the pisspoor terrace that they have at the front. It looks ugly, confined and absolutely awful. Definately to avoid that place.
@@carloscalderon3840 best food i had in firenze was I'Tuscani 2. the meat was phenomenal and the service top notch. A bit expensive but honestly it was one of the best steaks i ever had in my life. And don't forget to order the pork sausages.
@@aragmarverilian8238 A tourist suing in a foreign country over a meal? The amount of time / money that would take is not even close to worth it. The people have to police these things.
A few tips many already have mentioned 1. Don't eat there if there are no locals 2. Only order Italian food 3. Go into a non food shop or ask a local where they eat 4. Expensive doesn't mean its the best in fact locals will not be eating at those places on a day to day basis
how the fu do you know whos a local or not? completely dumb statement here Also when most of these tourist restaurants are popped up and no way to escape and you’re hungry what do you do? eat right? Better statement is go to the nearest carrefour and buy ingredients or local market to cook yourself
@@bobbyhill5067 Lol.. yeah.. I was chuckling when I read this too... I've been to these places many times and never had a bad experience... just read reviews, choose well and enjoy!
@@TwinBrossz just look at alleys, and look outside the center. or just ask locals you see. Its the same in every major city in the world. I went to Valencia in Spain, and found the best food by exploring the city and looking outside the main/center city area.
Went to Rome. Needed a taxi from Metro to Hotel. Perhaps 4 blocks. Got there the taxi driver tells me. "Fifty and Five Euro please". What? €55? "Yes sir" I go into hotel and check with desk clerk. He gets very angry, steps out to taxi, screams at taxi driver, backhand slaps him across the face back and forth, spits on the ground, throws some change at him, grabs the receipt, and steps with me inside the hotel. Turns out it was €5.50 (Five Euro and 50c) When they say the 50 first and 5 second, it comes out 50 and 5 Euro. Big scam, he knew exactly what he was doing. The desk clerk sent his con a-ss packin'
It costs 30 euro from either of the the Airport's to Rome , They saw you coming. Some Italian phrases or language would have helped you. They change attitude when you try to speak the language.
Coperto is normal in Italy, you have paid it in every restaurant with service at the table, it's the fee for being service and cleaning. To be noted, we do not tip and you are not expected to
If you have a very good Service, TIP - You are not in Japan - If there is Service Charge added, then tip only, if THE SERVICE itself was exeptional service according to yourself - There are great Individuals a log the Way to be granted...
@@Kokkikoulussa You may not be in Japan but you are in Italy, tipping is also not common at all here, since everything is already paid for including everybody working (arguably). The only times you leave a tip is as a "thank you" to the waiters for the quality of the service.
@@primalinea682that’s exactly what a tip in America is. It’s not mandatory. It’s based on how well you think your server did. A typical tip is 15%. If they didn’t do a good job then no tip. If they really did well and your feeling generous them by all means tip more. It’s totally optional.
@@cody0126aa tip of 2 euros on a meal that is an average of 50 euros per person? Are you sure that is a tip? Is acceptable for your culture to give 2 euros to the waiter after you spent 50 euros on food? In Italy it's called coperto cause you pay a small fee for napkins, tablecloths, plates and cutleries, not because you are supposed to give money to the waiter. The waiter is ideally already paid a living wage
@@alessandrom7181i'm sorry but this food didn't look particularly good. With that said, italian food does tend to be underseasoned and him buying steak is already a losing battle since its his specialty. Those steaks did look miserable thou and I'm not even that good with them. Food in italy is also not meant to be mixed as far as I understand it so that's another point on possibly making them bland. I think he just didn't know what he was getting into. If you expect western taste on their food you will be dissapointed. Its like expecting mediterranean or latino flavoring out of weatern food. Its just not happening lol
@@alessandrom7181 What are all the people who don't avoid these places? Superblind? Could be a new Marvel hero or very very weird pr0n. I think he simply was in Italy and shares his experiences, the good and the bad ones. Guga made many Videos where he praises italian cuisine, but beef is just not what italian cuisine excels at and thats not really a secret.
@@Fairy-Uvinq "Those steaks can look like they want the point is another one. He just goes to eat stuff in Italian regions known to be expert in other dishes or in tourist traps and then complains. Italy has regional dishes not national on top of everything. Pizza is good in Naples not everywhere. He even asks for Japanese food in Italy.. And what is Western food and taste btw?? LOL Western food is in Europe, Med countries comprised who are still Western Europe, not in USA. USA is just a melting pot of food stuff, latino and Mediterranean too, even on food. Also Italian food like in ALL Europe is much more natural, underseasoned means nothing, it's USA that poisons and eat verything super seasoned.
Guga! luv your honesty i'm glad you spoke your mind and taste buds this is why i trust you a longtime viewer subscriber and owner of all your products ,
The bottle of coke on the table is tantamount to sacrilege! Been travelling to Italy every year for 50 years...never had a bad meal, never been so stupid as to go to a tourist TripAdvisor restaurant. Never been dumb enough to eat Japanese food in Italy, never seen an Italian eat pasta out of a Parmesane....just saying ❤
@@alieffauzanrizky7202he chose that just to badmouth because he realized he gets views..he Is a dou che. He willingly chose tourist traps, deal with it
Honest? More likely badmouthing about italian food for getting views. Pretty sure you can't dry age a steak in Nutella and talk bad about italian pasta.
@SleazySpliff It s a tourist trap here in Italy... But man the elfen lied eye is my photo for everything... great choice..I use it for WhatsApp and other stuff..not got yt... funny to see someone else using it....best anime ever
@@thierryorella7017 sure it's a trap but the way of production is not wrong. This is my point, if you want eat real good pasta Alfredo go not to a Trap for sure. And thanks about the profile picture
One of the great joys of visiting Italy are the people. I speak very limited Italian, but young people speak English amazingly well. Just talk to the locals, your shopkeepers, the folks at your coffee house, baked goods, etc. they have never steered me wrong. I promise it will only enhance your Italy experience!
I lived in Italy for a year and I can assure you all that it’s very easy to fall on tourist traps. For that reason, if you’re traveling to Italy and you want to have the best experience, try learning some Italian. Italians are in general very warm and receptive people IF you take time and effort to speak the bare minimum of their language. Here’s some advice for you guys not to fall on tourist traps, however, you have to understando one thing before; if you are going out for fine dining, very expensive places, michelin star restaurants, 50 best etc, you will get some of the best food of your life and I would not consider it a tourist trap. The advice listed below refers to your day-to-day restaurants and food establishments in general. 1- Always ask a local, it could be your guide (although some are not very honest with tourists), but preferably ask someone at the inn, hostel or hotel you’re staying and make it very clear you’re looking for an authentic place. Ask them for places that they usually go, whether it’s for dates, fine dining, casual dining or night outs. They’ll give you the best advice. 2- Italians don’t like to mixing with foreigners at all, especially Americans. For that reason authentic restaurants will rarely make an effort to receive tourists. 3- Avoid places that serve Italian dishes from multiple regions. Authentic Italian places usually only serve dishes from the region they are established at. Also, it´s fairly common for people to say "I went to Milan and their pizza was terrible". Yes, if you're not eating at a place that is especialized in pizza in Milan, it is probably not going to be good. Since Milan is not the region where pizza comes from, the average pizza there is not that good. Food in italy is very segregated, so don´t expect to eat good food from Campania in Lombardia, cause it is not going to happen, unless you go to a specialized place. 3- If you’re in a major city and you’re trying to find local, authentic and traditional food and you are searching on google and yelp in English, forget it, you’re gonna fall into tourist traps. Always make your searches in Italian and use google translator on the webpages and apps to help you out. The restaurants that take time to promote themselves in English are most likely to be tourist traps. 4- If the menu is completely in English or has an English version, you probably already fell in a tourist trap. If it has photos, be sure it is a tourist trap. 5- If the staff speaks perfect English, you probably fell into a tourist trap. 6- If you’re at a place with stellar costumer service, especially if it is similar or even better than American and Canadian standards, you’re also probably in a tourist trap. 7- Although it seems counterintuitive, since people usually associate pasta with easy to eat meals, authentic italian pasta recipes are not what some palates are used to. Usually people think about pasta with super creamy, rich, consistent and dense sauces, almost like a bechamel sauce. Real Italian pasta recipes are far from that. Pasta is made in several manners, and most of them require very few ingredients and result in only sufficient sauce to coat the pasta, maybe a bit more than that. When looking at something an American refers as Chicken Alfredo, an Italian would probably find it inedible for being to fatty, too rich, too dense and for having a volume of sauce that makes it similar to a soup for them. 8- Avoid places known for gimmicks, like restaurants that put someone on display making fresh pasta or a place that sells pasta made on cheese wheels. Pasta made on cheese wheels is a somewhat recent trend that got hyped on social media, but it´s not common or traditional in italian cuisine. As for fresh pasta, please understand that IT IS NOT BETTER than dry pasta, it is not an exclusive delicacy to be searched for during your trip. If you are looking at a restaurant that promotes itself for making fresh pasta, it most definetely is a tourist trap. Fresh pasta is a type of pasta to be eaten with certain dishes, due to its consistency and overall richness due to usage of eggs into the mix. The vast majority of pasta dishes you are all looking for in Italy (for instance, carbonara) IS MADE WITH DRY PASTA.
"6- If you’re at a place with stellar costumer service, especially if it is similar or even better than American and Canadian standards, you’re also probably in a tourist trap." Agreed. Someone else was talking about tipping for outstanding service. But, they don't seem to realize that service in Italy should be minimal. They engage you when you arrive, take orders, deliver food and drinks and then... they leave you alone. The whole time. If you need another drink or something, you wave them down. And when you're finished with your plates, they'll show back up to offer dessert and coffee. There's no room for "outstanding" service. It's a process. And one that I like a lot. I'm so glad I don't live in the US anymore. Just thinking about dining there is stressful.
@@praesentius Yes! I’m from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and our costumer service is similar to Italy’s, so to me it’s perfect. People are not over the top, they are kind and polite enough but nothing over the top. You order your food, your drinks and after that, they’ll leave you to it. They won’t ask you how you are, if need anything else and most importantly, they will not ask if you would like the check the second you finish your meal.
That’s a great analysis, in my opinion. I especially agree about photos and English on the menu, huge red flags, 99% tourist trap. I’d also add: be wary of very low or very high prices, places with menus longer than a page, and never expect to find great fish, pizza, pasta, and meat all at the same spot. Many places specialize in one of those and keep other items on the menu just because. And yeah - stick to what the region is known for unless trusted locals give you specific recommendations.
As an Italian, I don't completely agree with point 2. Yes, the best restaurants don't promote themselves to tourists, but it's not cuz we don't like to mix with foreigners but cuz they don't want to deal with immense crowds of tourists. Also regarding point 5, today it's not really like that anymore since more and more ppl speak English, so a good English from the staff isn't necessarily an indicator of a tourist trap. Menu in English however, yeah totally a tourist place, maybe not necessarily a tourist trap but not super authentic for sure (unless is fine dining, in that case they will probably have an English menu)
8:07 all the restaurants in italy make you pay “coperto”, and 2 € per person is very reasonable. That is to cover bread, breadsticks and other stuff, it’s a traditional fee from hundreds of years ago. That said, the restaurant is a tourist trap, if you see a restaurant on tiktok don’t go, if there’s no locals don’t go, and if they make a show don’t go too
@@karasekjh I mean it depends, sometimes maybe it's just a cheap place with ok food. Depends on what you're looking for. When I was on lunch break I was eating at a nearby bar with my collegues. Nothing special, the place was full of locals, the food was ok and tre price was low that's why we all were there.
Quick advice from a italian foodie. If you see a menu with english translation, just RUN! Italians don't need translations, and if you want the real food, go where italians go. Just use your phone and translate any italian menu. Second advice. Italy is very regional with food, if you eat lasagna in florence... just.. Why? jump on a train, 1 hour heading north and in bologna you can eat the best lasagna of your life! It may be quicker to go to bologna, eat, and come back than to wait for the service in one of those tourist traps. AVOID tourist zones if you want good authentic italian food. ... or simply ASK TO ITALIANS, and if you desperately want to trust online reviews, DON'T GO FOR THE ENGLISH ONES! Look for reviews that are written IN ITALIAN, the, again, use your phone to translate. No italian will ever write a review in italy using english... just think about it.
It's kind of wild to suggest that it's normal that you can't expect a good lasagna to be made three hours away from where it was invented. I wouldn't consider that a point of pride. It's also a crazy suggestion that the birth place of a dish won't be littered with tourist traps for the millions of visitors that come there from around the world specifically to try that dish. It's like suggesting you can expect your Carbonara to be good so long as you get it in Rome. I can promise you there is a lot of terrible Carbonara in Rome.
What if we follow the first part of your advice and eat where the Italians eat. My meal should be very good and I may want to post a review. I will post that review in English (because that's what I speak). But, according to the second part of your advice, my review should not be trusted, even though I followed the first part of your advice...just think about it.
@@taristazin2073 Just use common sense. If there are e.g., a 100 reviews and _one_ is in English it doesn't matter. If, because of that one review, international business grows and the English, or any other foreign language, reviews are the majoriy the international business, following the advice; will reduce and so will the non-local language reviews. If not, probably the local business will suffer because there are too many tourists. @filippocappi928 gave a meaningful hint for people who can relate this to each other. It is also a very useful hint for other European countries. Speaking of tourist reviews: these should be treated with caution anyway. Many tourists rate according to their own experiences and habits in their home country. For example, pasta always has a bite in Italy. If tourists are used to pasta being a visually textured mush from home, then the review will be poor -- although by Italian standards the quality can be very good. Or: many Americans claim that the service in Europe is poor. But Europeans don't want a waitress or waiter who asks every five minutes: “Is everything to your satisfaction?” and also offers unsolicited small talk. They want to be left in peace. A professional waiter/waitress knows when (s)he is needed. In addition, many tourists are not familiar with local peculiarities. Guga also fell into this trap when he saw that _coperto_ is listed as an item on bills. This item has historical reasons, while _surcharge_ in the USA is simply an invention to collect more money from guests. If American tourists tell me, a German, that a certain German restaurant is top notch then it probably isn't. That is lived experience.
@@taristazin2073maybe it makes sense to say "go for restaurants which have also a lot of positive Italians reviews. If you see only English reviews, then it's probably a tourist trap". I don't want to defend the dude I'm just thinking 😁
I’m Italian and as an Italian, we would never ever go to a restaurant in the middle of the city where is full of tourists… you wanna go out of the city centre and look for some nice little restaurants where actual Italians goes because otherwise in any other part of the world you are going to get ripped off 99% of the times . Basic rules baby basic rules….
Well, it is Guga's "fault" (I think the fault is always on those that try to rip off people, but for what I understand Guga knows how to avoid most traps but just makes video about them), in Italy we don't sell Japanease steaks (there is almost no way to find any kind of wagyu). The traditional way to eat meat in italy is not even steaks (bistecca alla Fiorentina is almost an exception). If you want to eat meat: 1. In Piedmont eat Bollito alla Piemontese (boiled meat) super tender amazing meat with 7 traditional sauces. Or Fritto misto alla Piemontese (fried meat + some sweet things). In both you will find a lot of cuts that are not common like tongue, head and brain. And also raw meat... Remember that Fassona (the traditional beef in Piedmont) is really lean but got really fine muscle fibers so the tender cuts need to be cooked very little (and it is the only meat that is not rubbery when raw). The boiled cuts have much more connective tissue so they are much softer and good when cooked for a long time (and the traditional fatty ox is amazing). 2. In Milan eat ossobuco (shank shallow fried in a pan with flour and cooked in brooth) or cotoletta alla milanese (loin fried with breadcrumbs) 3. In Florence the best thing is actually lampredotto. 4. In Emilia Romagna there are a lot of amazing cold cuts like Mortadella and Prosciutto Crudo di Parma. and basically anywhere in Italy (except for Piedmont) the best meat to eat is pork, not beef, not chicken. Also you can see in the video a few things that are wrong. There's nothing wrong with places that show someone making the pasta on the front (and I've been to one place like that that made great, cheap fresh pasta) but obviously you have to look at the price before you go in. Coperto is almost always there (it is not tipping since it cover the bread and it is a fixed amount that you will know in advance) it will not be there in pizzeria (since usually there is no bread) and some other places where you usually do not get table service (even if you can seat and eat)... but 3€ is a lot (it is usually 2€ or less). Tortelli with spinach and ricotta are traditional and there is really nothing wrong with them. Spinach and ricotta is a great combo. The counters that display meat in Italy are by law steel counters, with protective glass and refrigerated so there was probably nothing wrong in that part of the video either. Bottom line: 1. Make sure you order traditional dishes from the region you are in 2. Check the prices of a restaurant before going in (and maybe also check if the portions are decent). €10 for a first course is ok (if the pasta dish is fresh), €15 is too much (unless there is truffle on top), €1-2 is the classic charge for "coperto" and it should include bread. 3. Don't assume that health rules are not respected just because it is different from the USA. Here in Italy we are much more strict about respecting health rules when it comes to food than anywhere else in the world. 4. Do not order cheese wheel pasta that's not traditional, not something anybody does and clearly a turist trap.
@@paradoxparade1 I always write a lot. If you don't want to read just do not read (unemployment in Italy is higher than in US because there are rules, a contract with paid holidays (+ days like Christmas and new year that are paid by default) + paid sick leave + some protections against lay off). Also enjoy Trump since you Americans like it.
As an italian, I am so sorry for you and the foreigners for all of these tourist traps you tried to have a lunch or dinner in. Some Italian restaurant owners are not smart, they prefer to earn a lot of money robbering tourists with average food, instead of keeping they on their side with good food without scamming.
@@gostodemaisdaroca4052 Quality comes with a price, otherwise greedy people wouldn't skip on quality if it was all the same financially. Don't be so naive.
I was stationed in Italy with the NAVY for three and a half years in the early 90’s. I made friends with some locals and I got to sample their home cooking. I also would go to various restaurants with my Italian friends and the food was always delicious. I was fortunate to travel a bit through Italy as well as Europe and I would always try to find out where the locals ate when I was in a new place.
Guga reminds me of Mom. To this day I can count on one hand how many times she actually was impressed with food at a restaurant. It's always "Eh, it's OK... I could make this way better at home."
Thanks for mentioning the ladies making pasta outside of restaurants thing. This nonsense exploded in the center of Rome like 2 years ago, never seen anything similar before and I’m from Rome. I’m always sorry when I see video of tourists robbed or scammed in Italy, so inform yourself before travelling and watch out for pickpockets, scammers and tourist traps.
They copied it from asian restaurants in china that traditionally make the noodles as a show. Anyways, it wouldnt be the first things italians copy from asians
You need to get some locals to advise you on where to go in Italy. Avoid the shiny places and look for alleys outside of city centers, away from the touristic plazas and monuments. Ask around where you can eat well at a reasonable price, we will help you out
Kinda interesting how a Touresty Places serve one of the worst foods.....You would think that they would at least serve the Good to Great food, albeit at higher prices...
@@1flash3571 many of those places are owned by foreigners and people who cant cook, but they stay in business because they have a good location that attracts a lot of tourists. I cant express how much i hate this kind of places because they shine a bad light on all of the italian cousine and scare off potential tourists from returning in italy. (before anybody thinks it, i dont have anything against foreigners owning restaurants but dont make it pass as an original italian restaurant if you cant cook italian dishes!)
@@1flash3571 think of it like this: spots in front or near big monuments costs a lot. And I mean A LOT, that's because of location and visibility. Who can afford places that costs a ton of money? Big investors. People that usually do anything in life but cook. Those people with no experience in cooking or managing a restaurant create some flashy bullshit like "cooking the pasta into the cheese wheel" and then live just by the sheer number of people passing by. If you want to eat good you'll need to find a more secluded location run by people that can do their job but sadly don't have the money to open a restaurant in more costly places
@@1flash3571 Yeah I'm Italian and it makes me mad to hear all of these stories, I also fell in some tourist trap before. It's crazy how many there are. It gives us such a bad image. Imagine your whole life you get convinced Italy has one of the best cuisines and then you go in a tourist trap and base your judgement on that...
Think about it, do we Italians really need to see what a lasagna, a pizza, or a risotto looks like? When you see a restaurant displaying pictures of food, it’s clearly a tourist trap.
Hey Guga just for the records, we in Puglia actually use cheese on fish. Our main traditional dish is “riso, patate e cozze” (rice, potatoes and mussels) which comes with pecorino cheese on top. Next time don’t feel ashamed to request some cheese, it is not that weird in the south
One thing ive learned: Find the most remote place, tucked away in a back alley where noone who doesent KNOW its there would ever go. THATS where you get the good stuff. Those guys rely on people coming back.
I went to Italy in September and I don't think I got ripped off. You can always ask for recommendations, especially if you're staying in an air bnb. Secondly, look for Italian reviews on google. Third, prices. If a restaurant is charging significantly more than 10€ for a pasta dish, leave. Fourth, look at the customers. If a restaurant has Italians queuing like a pizzeria I saw in Bologna, it's probably good. The same way you want to look for Chinese customers in a Chinese restaurant, etc.
Yes! I've been to Italy a few times, and always ask hotel staff where to eat. 80% of the time it's good, and the guy that send you gets a small commission too. And they like to recommend good places, so you'll ask them every day where to eat, they'll make the reservation for you and it's a win/win/win. It also helps if you tell them what it is you want to eat.
Here's the thing, after seeing you in Portugal, altought i thought you generally had a nice experience, I saw you falling tourist trap after tourist trap, so I'm sure italy it's even harder to dodge them. There really needs to be a deep research before going to tourist filled cities.
I am Italian and I live in a very touristic city like Bologna, I am starting to believe that he goes to touristic restaurants just to make some youtube contents. He makes very little effort to find places where he can eat proper food. He also struggle to understand that the Italian meats are not only steaks.
As Italian i had very hard time to avoid tourist traps in Lisbon. I don't think it's that hard in italy (excluding Roma and Venezia maybe) but he's just uneducated and choose bad restaurant to make engagement and contents
@@ClaudioINDASTRIA it is very hard even in Florence and Verona, and in several small towns that have huge numbers of foreign tourists (like Alberobello probably). I can see that this process is growing also in my city, Bologna, a place where tourism wasn't so much developed until 10 years ago. Now if you walk around the central area around the "due torri" and "neptune fountain" the most of the restaurants are touristic and, of course, it is also the area where the tourists spend the most of their time when they come here.
Pasta made in front, the best tourist trap indicator in a restaurant in Italy: run away, they're usually done in a backroom and not during rush/service hours. Also... Pasta alla Ruota (Parmesan wheel), while some good restaurant can do this too it used to be very rare, it's the typical tourist trap because it became quite popular on social networks recently.
@@alessandrom7181 because he went to places to show others what to look out for? This is all set up. He obviously just went to places that would be easy for a tourist to find and showed off the issues people can look for and showed the reason you should look out for these things in final product I think that jab to his intelligence is a bit of projecting. You’re insecure about being unintelligent. Maybe for good reason. Thankfully most issues with intelligence (usually not the actual issue) can be fixed by just stopping to think for a minuet. This guy knows food. You don’t think he knows how to find good food in a place he’s visiting? But it would be cool to find a decent place that is in the middle of all the touristy areas if possible for convenience.
This video is a great example of why you should do your due diligence research before you travel to find restaurants worth visiting. If you go in blind, don’t be surprised that you get blindsided by ripoffs.
Nah you can do it on the fly, you just need common travel sense... pasta in a cheese wheel though, thats just stupid, thats gold leaf salt bae steak stupid
Trip Advisor to find the great restaurants... then check online just to make sure. Other alternative if you're not on a budget is the Michelin guide... The Michelin guide has restaurants that are recommended. But they have not earned any stars as yet, so they are reasonably priced. We eaten in many michelin guide restaurants who earned their first star years later and the food is always excellent.
I wonder how Guga's face would look like if he saw the average butcher shop in the markets in México 😂😂😂. There's a reason most people like their steaks well done here, it's a evolutionary habit 😂
You got ripped off because you searched for the most „elevated“ restaurants like a coglione. Ask locals next time. Especially taxi drivers, they often speak English and know a lot of secrets.
Depends on what you're looking for. Are you looking just to eat something? Then avoid all the hipster/flashy places. Usually they have below average food with high prices. Are you looking for a nice place to have a romantic dinner with your wife? You're gonna have to search for a fancy place and you'll most likely spend a lot. From what I've seen, all my life here in Italy, the fancy places are correctly represented on Trip Advisor / Google while the "just eat something good and cheap" places are not because usually they are managed by old people that don't even know what a website is.
i can not think of any tourist trap restaurant for example in hamburg. There is simply none. There are "bad" places at some public main places but i dont consider them tourist traps. Anyone is free to tell me a restaurant in hamburg which is like a real tourist trap
@@TheCaryz the more tourists the more tourists traps. When I went to Indonesia Bali was full of tourist traps, java and Flores were not but that's because most of the tourists go to Bali
@@TheCaryz There are some Fish Restaurants around the harbour area who i would definitely call tourist traps, also some Sushi places, and the Repperbahn in itself is partly a huge tourist trap.
Love the honesty in this video. My one experience visiting Europe a few years ago was all tourist trap after tourist trap. I felt duped and wasted my money. I’m sure there are ways to visit Europe with being stuck at tourist traps. I’ll do my research the next time I go!
When I visited Italy, I kept my senses open. Look where the local restaurants where only Italians go, smell the aroma, listen to how people talk and look at their expressions on their faces, I don't speak or understand Italian as a second or third language. Human body language you can always read. I learned this from being in the Army stationed in Germany and traveling Europe as a young man.
This dude found the tourist traps on purpose just to complain for his videos. Now I'll give in and go to some, but only for the ambiance or views from the location and I will expect average food at best.
To experience italian food you either have a local tell you where to go (most likely in a trattoria in the middle of nowhere) or you buy good quality ingredients and make it yourself. i ve fallen for tourists traps myself and i m italian. edit: btw the service charge, or "coperto" is a completely normal thing to have to pay in most places , it usually goes from 1 to 3 euros per person, tho to pay 3 euros it must be either a tourist trap or a really fancy and expansive place like a famous chef's restaurant or something
Sadly coperto has increased quite a bit over the last decade. I remember 1/2€ in many pizzerie, now some of them, claiming to be fancier, ask up to 3€. A pizzeria. In southern Italy. Pizza o panino erano gli standard in adolescenza per i prezzi abbordabili, ora li si paga a naso un 20-30% in più
We had some amazing meals in Italy by buying ingredients from the local supermarket, and cooking ourselves. And we had many, many wonderful restaurant meals, by asking the wait staff what was the best item on the menu and what local wine to drink. But we naturally avoid places like those that Guga visited, because I avoid them in my home country, so why would I visit them in another country?
Il coperto può anche essere di 5€ o più dipende da cosa ti offrono, hai presente la differenza tra la tovaglietta di carta ed una tovaglia con piatti in porcellana, cristalli e posateria di livello?
@@asepsisaficionado7376for sure he should start to tone down the way he seasons his discese, his taste buds are all messed up by the amount of salt and heavy seasoning that he always uses! He has a very American style type of taste buds…he became incapable to taste and appreciate simple good fresh ingredients!!
I keep asking some Italian friends to accompany me on a trip to Italy. I just want some inside knowledge to stop me being ripped off, like this guy! Nice video, thanks.
@@alessandrom7181 So he is a bad tourist then. Has nothing to do with knowing food and be good at recognizing good food. If he whent to a tourist trap, and thought the place was fantastic, you might have a point. He didnt though.
you have been to the most tourist restaurants ever :D i've never been served pasta out of a parmesan wheel since i pass my holidays there till over 10 years. i've been to one of the best bistecca alla fiorentina restaurants in tuscany and man - you really have to give italy a second chance out of the tourist world ;)
yes there are special restaurants that do serve pasta from a wheel and it is very good I think this guy is just a complainer, he is used to eating hotdogs and hamburgers
Gugaman, I love your videos and I’ve watched dozens for years now. But I’m completely let down by your bad advice here. You come across like a ‘typical American tourist’. I know you’re not that. Things are different in Europe. I’ve travelled a lot of Italy and I love it. Your findings on poor seasoning on beef would be pretty much universal. I find that Italians don’t use nearly as much salt as we North Americans do. That’s not a fail on the restaurant- it’s a cultural difference. I love salt on my meat and so I’m with you, but you must salt your 5:065:06 own if you are used to heavily salted foods. Also the cover charge is somewhat common. Sometimes it will show as a bread charge. You aren’t expected to tip. If you do, a few euros is what is customary. Not 18% like our side of the pond. This is a win, not a ripoff. You don’t get the same service, and this is the reason why. The stuffed pasta looked awesome. You are there and I was not so I don’t disagree with your opinion there but the pasta itself looked super thin and amazing- my question to you is how was the pasta? Was it good or was the actual pasta also terrible? Just curious on that one. Enjoy your travels but try to enjoy the differences- this is why we travel. If it was Florida, why make the effort to go???
never put parmigiano on fish.. don't drink coke with good food.. order local products not Japanese beef... order vegetable when in season, hence tomatoes only in the summer :)
@@michaelcarey299this! A coke is never drank with lunch in Italy. The only exception is often chosen while eating s pizza (other option with pizza is beer).
Guga - love your vids, personality, production, creativity, energy and deep desire to explore and share! Here's a tip - next time you go to Italy go in August for Cinghiale (Wild Boar). It's an amazing bonanza of meat of every kind - from roasts to steaks to cold cuts to sausage - all made from Italian Wild Boar. In higher end restaurants you can hand select the steak or roast and they prepare it while you imbibe in fine Tuscan Wines..... Thanks!
August? Everything's closed and all the Italians are away on vacation. Plus it's the hottest month of the year. Get your wild boar in September or June.
@@Sender76 Yep! I'm Italian but live in Australia. Just spent 3 weeks going around Italy and the food was mediocre, even at the places recommended to me by family who have been living in Italy their whole lives. The standard of pub food in Australia is superior to the food I've been having in Italy.
Towards the end you hit the nail on the head; you didn’t see a single Italian eating at the restaurant. I lived in Livorno for a couple years and loved a restaurant where the menu was written on a chalkboard because it was based on the catch of the day. Sapori di Napoli, Ciros. That is where Italian families went to eat and for extended periods of time. Don’t ever expect to find good Italian food near where the tourists attractions are. Walk a little bit.
Plus he's complaining the guy came out of the bathroom and went straight to work without washing his hands. I guess he never heard of bathroom sinks. One more thing, you'll see meats hanging at markets in open air. The air in Italy is less humid and therefore less chance of spoilage.
Guga, I watched your content from Spain and noticed you missed some of the country’s true meat temples! Spain is an underrated paradise for meat lovers, and with your passion for meat, you have to check these out. There are many more, but here are a few to note: Can Xurrades (Barcelona), El Capricho (León), Casa Julián de Tolosa (San Sebastián), Laia (San Sebastián), Asador Etxebarri (Bilbao), Hundred Burgers (Madrid/Valencia) and Belua (Valencia). You won’t regret it! I love u bro.
Food in Italy CAN be great! This summer I did a little Experiment by myself. Within a week I bought 3 Bistecci Fiorentina from different sources, each between 1.6 and 1.8kg. I cooked them sous vide and finished them on a powerful gas Grill (which was available at my accommodation). Judges were an Italian Nonna, her son, and myself. #1 was from Falorni, mybe the best butcher in Tuscany, 36€/kg. #2 was from a local butcher in Castellina in Chianti, 40€/kg. #3 was from Coop, a local supermarket, 20€/kg Results: #1 was best (by small margin), #3 came in a little behind, 2# was worst (but still a very enjoyable steak) Next time I go to Tuscany I'll by my steaks at the supermarket...
Me too and i completely agree.. I'm constantly disappointed with restaurants in this regard...😅 first grandma, then mom, then aunt, then me.. i love my own Italian food 😂
GUGA. Most of those places are tourist traps. As I was stationed overseas and traveled while I was there and you can tell the quality wasn’t there. I avoided my main areas and went to the restaurants that the locals went to. But saying this it’s like that everywhere. You order flounder they give you another type of white fish. 😊
It's called coperto in Italian. Most restaurants will charge you for it. Annoying at first to many visitors, but it's a part of Italian restaurant culture you will have to accept.
@@alexanderwesterstahl in America you get paid based on performance. That’s why customer service is much better and the waiters are more attentive in America.
well.. the meat is cooled. dude guga just has never seen european meat showcases or visited any supermarket. and even if they were not refrigerated, its a traditional and controlled process in italy. the meat of the chianina cows "Bistecca alla Fiorentina" for example is kinda protected against rot and bacteria growth. they put these big chunks there for a certain amount of time, it remains safe.
I’m in Florence (since 29 years) and would never eat there! Don’t understand why social media has everyone going to the same mediocre restaurant and sandwich shop…
Because they're akin to having a Chinese dumpling lady making dumplings fresh, to lure you in. Or like a fancy chocolaterie/bakery putting a window show.
The pasta cooked inside the parmesan wheel is a classic tourist trap, Guga. No Italian would do that: it actually seems very disrespectful towards such a delicacy. Please stop being, Gugallible and actually read the reviews: if they seem written by bots, they probably are.
Not going to lie, I've felt this way about "Brazilian Steak House's" in the US (Miami area). Whenever there is fillet wrapped in bacon on a stick, I'm usually disappointed by the flavor. The touristy Italian food Guga tried did not look up to par, except maybe the T-bones he showed.
I'm not sure about Italy, but in many places rents / land taxes are increasing, so restaurants need more customer turnover, resulting in shorter cooking times, or just cost cutting measures. Customers are also less patient. These changes have resulted in poorer meal quality.
I love Italy, as a Swiss citizen I have been there countless times, but this kind of thing gets on my nerves. You take the bad with the good, I will keep going again and again, enjoying all the good Italy has to offer and biting my tongue when I get ripped off again luckily that doesn't happen too often, you learn from experiences.
Next time, come to France, there's a hidden gem in Paris that I know of called "Le petit commine" that I'm sure you're gonna like. Edit: Forgot to mention that you can get a 30% off on most dishes by reserving a table on TheFork
The first warning I got when I got to Italy was avoiding ristorante. They are usually tourist traps. The girl we were renting the apartment from was very vocal about that tips, and we never went to one and stayed to the restaurants with traditionelle or something like that in their name. This was in Rome, but seems like she was correct.
Seriously u know beef so well.. u should know how much real wagyu cost .. €36 A5 wagyu is a complete scam Rule of thumb never order Wagyu especially A5 in Europe cos if it’s legit it will cost 3-4x more … enjoy their wines especially in Italy & Spain cos u get fantastic quality at great prices compared to other parts of the world… do proper research and Italy has some of the best food
Eating was the worst part of out recent trip to Italy. It was difficult to find a restaurant with Italians cooking and serving. With a few exceptions, the food was ordinary. Best meals we had were in the rest stops on the Autostrada.
U clearly had planned your trip wrong my friend, in every country there are places where u eat that are not the best, but let me tell you the food in autostrada is one of the worst food u can eat in Italy. So next time ask the locals we are really open about the restaurants or tavole calde that we like
My tip for Florence is, if you're in the touristy area, cross one of the bridges and keep walking until the menus with pictures on them disappear, then it's fairly safe starting from that line.
I had so many good meals in Florence had to go to back to a place we found on the first night and they ended up having real good steak
That is the best strategy. I have been to Italy far many more days that I can count, and I have had precisely one bad meal.
my guide recommended me a restaurant next to cathedral di santa maria... no picture menu and the food was absolutely great....
@@fatdoi003 Yes - proximity to landmarks is not necessarily a bad thing. I've eaten fantastically and cheaply in the shadow of the Pantheon. My tell is always touts. If the restaurant does not try to herd you in, it's probably worth a gamble.
same thing in Greece....when you go near Acropolis you dont eat at these restaurants with picture-menus...hahaha
I'm from Florence and I work in tourism. The amount of times I had to tell people that Osteria Pastella is kind of a tourist-trap is incredible 😂 They go very hard with internet Ads, their SEO must really be top-notch.
I hate this kind of places as well entirely because of the pisspoor terrace that they have at the front. It looks ugly, confined and absolutely awful. Definately to avoid that place.
Hi, do you have any restaurants the you recommend as a local? I always like to avoid tourist traps as much as possible lol
@@carloscalderon3840 best food i had in firenze was I'Tuscani 2. the meat was phenomenal and the service top notch. A bit expensive but honestly it was one of the best steaks i ever had in my life. And don't forget to order the pork sausages.
Do you know of angry tourists suing tourist trap restaurants?
@@aragmarverilian8238 A tourist suing in a foreign country over a meal? The amount of time / money that would take is not even close to worth it. The people have to police these things.
A few tips many already have mentioned
1. Don't eat there if there are no locals
2. Only order Italian food
3. Go into a non food shop or ask a local where they eat
4. Expensive doesn't mean its the best in fact locals will not be eating at those places on a day to day basis
3. Is a very good tip! I’ve never thought of that 🫨
Google maps is your friend... look for honest reviews stating points above.
Also no menus with pictures.
how the fu do you know whos a local or not? completely dumb statement here
Also when most of these tourist restaurants are popped up and no way to escape and you’re hungry what do you do? eat right?
Better statement is go to the nearest carrefour and buy ingredients or local market to cook yourself
@@bobbyhill5067 Lol.. yeah.. I was chuckling when I read this too... I've been to these places many times and never had a bad experience... just read reviews, choose well and enjoy!
.
In any country you visit, eat where the locals eat. I always found small family owned restaurants were generally best
how do you find them
@@TwinBrosszFind the fattest native you can and follow them.
@@TwinBrossz just look at alleys, and look outside the center. or just ask locals you see. Its the same in every major city in the world.
I went to Valencia in Spain, and found the best food by exploring the city and looking outside the main/center city area.
You have to ask around. My boyfriend showed me. Also open times in another issue haha
@@TwinBrossz observe and listen. If the customers talk and look like locals, you hit the jackpot.
Went to Rome. Needed a taxi from Metro to Hotel. Perhaps 4 blocks. Got there the taxi driver tells me. "Fifty and Five Euro please". What? €55? "Yes sir" I go into hotel and check with desk clerk. He gets very angry, steps out to taxi, screams at taxi driver, backhand slaps him across the face back and forth, spits on the ground, throws some change at him, grabs the receipt, and steps with me inside the hotel. Turns out it was €5.50 (Five Euro and 50c) When they say the 50 first and 5 second, it comes out 50 and 5 Euro. Big scam, he knew exactly what he was doing. The desk clerk sent his con a-ss packin'
Desk clerk bono Italiano.
It costs 30 euro from either of the the Airport's to Rome , They saw you coming. Some Italian phrases or language would have helped you. They change attitude when you try to speak the language.
guanciale
Can't you just walk 4 blocks?
BS... slapped, spit on the ground... 😂😂🤣🤣
you have seen too many Hollywood movies on mafia Bob..
Spent 3 weeks in Italy: Venice, Florence, Rome, Cinq Terre. Always ate where the locals ate and had wonderful food.
Yeah Is this guga that is a dou'€3..
@@alessandrom7181 lol silly
@@alessandrom7181 Least insecure italian xddddddddd
Coperto is normal in Italy, you have paid it in every restaurant with service at the table, it's the fee for being service and cleaning. To be noted, we do not tip and you are not expected to
If you have a very good Service, TIP - You are not in Japan - If there is Service Charge added, then tip only, if THE SERVICE itself was exeptional service according to yourself - There are great Individuals a log the Way to be granted...
@@Kokkikoulussa You may not be in Japan but you are in Italy, tipping is also not common at all here, since everything is already paid for including everybody working (arguably).
The only times you leave a tip is as a "thank you" to the waiters for the quality of the service.
So it’s basically a tip just without saying the word tip.
@@primalinea682that’s exactly what a tip in America is. It’s not mandatory. It’s based on how well you think your server did. A typical tip is 15%. If they didn’t do a good job then no tip. If they really did well and your feeling generous them by all means tip more. It’s totally optional.
@@cody0126aa tip of 2 euros on a meal that is an average of 50 euros per person? Are you sure that is a tip? Is acceptable for your culture to give 2 euros to the waiter after you spent 50 euros on food? In Italy it's called coperto cause you pay a small fee for napkins, tablecloths, plates and cutleries, not because you are supposed to give money to the waiter. The waiter is ideally already paid a living wage
You rarely ever get UA-cam reviews where the reviews are not spectacular. This is a good thing.
Wrong, he found a new way to get views badmouthing everything and going in places even a blind person would avoid.
@@alessandrom7181 and he knows it safe to do it because it's not in America
@@alessandrom7181i'm sorry but this food didn't look particularly good. With that said, italian food does tend to be underseasoned and him buying steak is already a losing battle since its his specialty.
Those steaks did look miserable thou and I'm not even that good with them. Food in italy is also not meant to be mixed as far as I understand it so that's another point on possibly making them bland.
I think he just didn't know what he was getting into. If you expect western taste on their food you will be dissapointed. Its like expecting mediterranean or latino flavoring out of weatern food. Its just not happening lol
@@alessandrom7181 What are all the people who don't avoid these places? Superblind? Could be a new Marvel hero or very very weird pr0n.
I think he simply was in Italy and shares his experiences, the good and the bad ones. Guga made many Videos where he praises italian cuisine, but beef is just not what italian cuisine excels at and thats not really a secret.
@@Fairy-Uvinq "Those steaks can look like they want the point is another one. He just goes to eat stuff in Italian regions known to be expert in other dishes or in tourist traps and then complains. Italy has regional dishes not national on top of everything. Pizza is good in Naples not everywhere. He even asks for Japanese food in Italy..
And what is Western food and taste btw?? LOL
Western food is in Europe, Med countries comprised who are still Western Europe, not in USA.
USA is just a melting pot of food stuff, latino and Mediterranean too, even on food.
Also Italian food like in ALL Europe is much more natural, underseasoned means nothing, it's USA that poisons and eat verything super seasoned.
Guga! luv your honesty i'm glad you spoke your mind and taste buds this is why i trust you a longtime viewer subscriber and owner of all your products ,
Thank you for your sacrifices Guga.
yeah poor baby got to vacation in Italy
@@videostash413 and getting ripped off $200 for a mediocre meal.
@@videostash413 hes allowed to complain bro he paid for it
The bottle of coke on the table is tantamount to sacrilege! Been travelling to Italy every year for 50 years...never had a bad meal, never been so stupid as to go to a tourist TripAdvisor restaurant. Never been dumb enough to eat Japanese food in Italy, never seen an Italian eat pasta out of a Parmesane....just saying ❤
@@alieffauzanrizky7202he chose that just to badmouth because he realized he gets views..he Is a dou che. He willingly chose tourist traps, deal with it
I appreciate the honest reviews. Good stuff.
Honest? More likely badmouthing about italian food for getting views. Pretty sure you can't dry age a steak in Nutella and talk bad about italian pasta.
Preparing pasta in a cheese wheel is also just a tourist attraction
Bisognerebbe prenderli a calci in culo quelli che fanno la pasta in quella forma di parmigiano
uhm its how you make pasta alfredo but i guess you know it better.
@SleazySpliff It s a tourist trap here in Italy...
But man the elfen lied eye is my photo for everything... great choice..I use it for WhatsApp and other stuff..not got yt... funny to see someone else using it....best anime ever
@@thierryorella7017 sure it's a trap but the way of production is not wrong. This is my point, if you want eat real good pasta Alfredo go not to a Trap for sure. And thanks about the profile picture
@@SleazySpliff They use grated cheese and don't make it in a cheese wheel
One of the great joys of visiting Italy are the people. I speak very limited Italian, but young people speak English amazingly well. Just talk to the locals, your shopkeepers, the folks at your coffee house, baked goods, etc. they have never steered me wrong. I promise it will only enhance your Italy experience!
I lived in Italy for a year and I can assure you all that it’s very easy to fall on tourist traps. For that reason, if you’re traveling to Italy and you want to have the best experience, try learning some Italian. Italians are in general very warm and receptive people IF you take time and effort to speak the bare minimum of their language.
Here’s some advice for you guys not to fall on tourist traps, however, you have to understando one thing before; if you are going out for fine dining, very expensive places, michelin star restaurants, 50 best etc, you will get some of the best food of your life and I would not consider it a tourist trap. The advice listed below refers to your day-to-day restaurants and food establishments in general.
1- Always ask a local, it could be your guide (although some are not very honest with tourists), but preferably ask someone at the inn, hostel or hotel you’re staying and make it very clear you’re looking for an authentic place. Ask them for places that they usually go, whether it’s for dates, fine dining, casual dining or night outs. They’ll give you the best advice.
2- Italians don’t like to mixing with foreigners at all, especially Americans. For that reason authentic restaurants will rarely make an effort to receive tourists.
3- Avoid places that serve Italian dishes from multiple regions. Authentic Italian places usually only serve dishes from the region they are established at. Also, it´s fairly common for people to say "I went to Milan and their pizza was terrible". Yes, if you're not eating at a place that is especialized in pizza in Milan, it is probably not going to be good. Since Milan is not the region where pizza comes from, the average pizza there is not that good. Food in italy is very segregated, so don´t expect to eat good food from Campania in Lombardia, cause it is not going to happen, unless you go to a specialized place.
3- If you’re in a major city and you’re trying to find local, authentic and traditional food and you are searching on google and yelp in English, forget it, you’re gonna fall into tourist traps. Always make your searches in Italian and use google translator on the webpages and apps to help you out. The restaurants that take time to promote themselves in English are most likely to be tourist traps.
4- If the menu is completely in English or has an English version, you probably already fell in a tourist trap. If it has photos, be sure it is a tourist trap.
5- If the staff speaks perfect English, you probably fell into a tourist trap.
6- If you’re at a place with stellar costumer service, especially if it is similar or even better than American and Canadian standards, you’re also probably in a tourist trap.
7- Although it seems counterintuitive, since people usually associate pasta with easy to eat meals, authentic italian pasta recipes are not what some palates are used to. Usually people think about pasta with super creamy, rich, consistent and dense sauces, almost like a bechamel sauce. Real Italian pasta recipes are far from that. Pasta is made in several manners, and most of them require very few ingredients and result in only sufficient sauce to coat the pasta, maybe a bit more than that. When looking at something an American refers as Chicken Alfredo, an Italian would probably find it inedible for being to fatty, too rich, too dense and for having a volume of sauce that makes it similar to a soup for them.
8- Avoid places known for gimmicks, like restaurants that put someone on display making fresh pasta or a place that sells pasta made on cheese wheels. Pasta made on cheese wheels is a somewhat recent trend that got hyped on social media, but it´s not common or traditional in italian cuisine.
As for fresh pasta, please understand that IT IS NOT BETTER than dry pasta, it is not an exclusive delicacy to be searched for during your trip. If you are looking at a restaurant that promotes itself for making fresh pasta, it most definetely is a tourist trap.
Fresh pasta is a type of pasta to be eaten with certain dishes, due to its consistency and overall richness due to usage of eggs into the mix. The vast majority of pasta dishes you are all looking for in Italy (for instance, carbonara) IS MADE WITH DRY PASTA.
this is solid advice and has matched my experience to a T as well.
"6- If you’re at a place with stellar costumer service, especially if it is similar or even better than American and Canadian standards, you’re also probably in a tourist trap."
Agreed. Someone else was talking about tipping for outstanding service. But, they don't seem to realize that service in Italy should be minimal. They engage you when you arrive, take orders, deliver food and drinks and then... they leave you alone. The whole time. If you need another drink or something, you wave them down. And when you're finished with your plates, they'll show back up to offer dessert and coffee.
There's no room for "outstanding" service. It's a process. And one that I like a lot.
I'm so glad I don't live in the US anymore. Just thinking about dining there is stressful.
@@praesentius Yes! I’m from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, and our costumer service is similar to Italy’s, so to me it’s perfect. People are not over the top, they are kind and polite enough but nothing over the top. You order your food, your drinks and after that, they’ll leave you to it. They won’t ask you how you are, if need anything else and most importantly, they will not ask if you would like the check the second you finish your meal.
That’s a great analysis, in my opinion. I especially agree about photos and English on the menu, huge red flags, 99% tourist trap.
I’d also add: be wary of very low or very high prices, places with menus longer than a page, and never expect to find great fish, pizza, pasta, and meat all at the same spot. Many places specialize in one of those and keep other items on the menu just because.
And yeah - stick to what the region is known for unless trusted locals give you specific recommendations.
As an Italian, I don't completely agree with point 2. Yes, the best restaurants don't promote themselves to tourists, but it's not cuz we don't like to mix with foreigners but cuz they don't want to deal with immense crowds of tourists. Also regarding point 5, today it's not really like that anymore since more and more ppl speak English, so a good English from the staff isn't necessarily an indicator of a tourist trap. Menu in English however, yeah totally a tourist place, maybe not necessarily a tourist trap but not super authentic for sure (unless is fine dining, in that case they will probably have an English menu)
Wagyu in Italy? The Last thing I would eat on a Tour through Italy would be Japanese Beef.
8:07 all the restaurants in italy make you pay “coperto”, and 2 € per person is very reasonable. That is to cover bread, breadsticks and other stuff, it’s a traditional fee from hundreds of years ago. That said, the restaurant is a tourist trap, if you see a restaurant on tiktok don’t go, if there’s no locals don’t go, and if they make a show don’t go too
Also because in italy there is no tipping
@ it has nothings to do with tipping, it’s just a tradition that stuck through the years, none of that money goes to the waiters
@@Sbinott0 And the customers don't have a choice when it comes to your table, right? If you don't eat, do you still pay that 2 Euros?
If there are a lot of locals office people on their lunch break: IN, IN ,IN, IN!!!
@@karasekjh I mean it depends, sometimes maybe it's just a cheap place with ok food. Depends on what you're looking for. When I was on lunch break I was eating at a nearby bar with my collegues. Nothing special, the place was full of locals, the food was ok and tre price was low that's why we all were there.
Quick advice from a italian foodie. If you see a menu with english translation, just RUN!
Italians don't need translations, and if you want the real food, go where italians go.
Just use your phone and translate any italian menu.
Second advice. Italy is very regional with food, if you eat lasagna in florence... just.. Why? jump on a train, 1 hour heading north and in bologna you can eat the best lasagna of your life!
It may be quicker to go to bologna, eat, and come back than to wait for the service in one of those tourist traps.
AVOID tourist zones if you want good authentic italian food.
... or simply ASK TO ITALIANS, and if you desperately want to trust online reviews, DON'T GO FOR THE ENGLISH ONES!
Look for reviews that are written IN ITALIAN, the, again, use your phone to translate.
No italian will ever write a review in italy using english... just think about it.
This also goes for many European countries -- maybe except the business and politics oriented larger cities.
It's kind of wild to suggest that it's normal that you can't expect a good lasagna to be made three hours away from where it was invented. I wouldn't consider that a point of pride. It's also a crazy suggestion that the birth place of a dish won't be littered with tourist traps for the millions of visitors that come there from around the world specifically to try that dish. It's like suggesting you can expect your Carbonara to be good so long as you get it in Rome. I can promise you there is a lot of terrible Carbonara in Rome.
What if we follow the first part of your advice and eat where the Italians eat. My meal should be very good and I may want to post a review. I will post that review in English (because that's what I speak). But, according to the second part of your advice, my review should not be trusted, even though I followed the first part of your advice...just think about it.
@@taristazin2073 Just use common sense. If there are e.g., a 100 reviews and _one_ is in English it doesn't matter. If, because of that one review, international business grows and the English, or any other foreign language, reviews are the majoriy the international business, following the advice; will reduce and so will the non-local language reviews. If not, probably the local business will suffer because there are too many tourists.
@filippocappi928 gave a meaningful hint for people who can relate this to each other. It is also a very useful hint for other European countries.
Speaking of tourist reviews: these should be treated with caution anyway. Many tourists rate according to their own experiences and habits in their home country.
For example, pasta always has a bite in Italy. If tourists are used to pasta being a visually textured mush from home, then the review will be poor -- although by Italian standards the quality can be very good.
Or: many Americans claim that the service in Europe is poor. But Europeans don't want a waitress or waiter who asks every five minutes: “Is everything to your satisfaction?” and also offers unsolicited small talk. They want to be left in peace. A professional waiter/waitress knows when (s)he is needed.
In addition, many tourists are not familiar with local peculiarities. Guga also fell into this trap when he saw that _coperto_ is listed as an item on bills. This item has historical reasons, while _surcharge_ in the USA is simply an invention to collect more money from guests.
If American tourists tell me, a German, that a certain German restaurant is top notch then it probably isn't. That is lived experience.
@@taristazin2073maybe it makes sense to say "go for restaurants which have also a lot of positive Italians reviews. If you see only English reviews, then it's probably a tourist trap". I don't want to defend the dude I'm just thinking 😁
I’m Italian and as an Italian, we would never ever go to a restaurant in the middle of the city where is full of tourists… you wanna go out of the city centre and look for some nice little restaurants where actual Italians goes because otherwise in any other part of the world you are going to get ripped off 99% of the times . Basic rules baby basic rules….
Yo, speak for yourself. The German regions f.e. I know of, its not like that.
@@NotUnymousIt Is..duh..
3:39 Notice how the "A5" is in quotations.
@@Asdasty
Works on contingency(?)
No (,) money down(!)
Well, it is Guga's "fault" (I think the fault is always on those that try to rip off people, but for what I understand Guga knows how to avoid most traps but just makes video about them), in Italy we don't sell Japanease steaks (there is almost no way to find any kind of wagyu).
The traditional way to eat meat in italy is not even steaks (bistecca alla Fiorentina is almost an exception).
If you want to eat meat:
1. In Piedmont eat Bollito alla Piemontese (boiled meat) super tender amazing meat with 7 traditional sauces. Or Fritto misto alla Piemontese (fried meat + some sweet things). In both you will find a lot of cuts that are not common like tongue, head and brain. And also raw meat... Remember that Fassona (the traditional beef in Piedmont) is really lean but got really fine muscle fibers so the tender cuts need to be cooked very little (and it is the only meat that is not rubbery when raw). The boiled cuts have much more connective tissue so they are much softer and good when cooked for a long time (and the traditional fatty ox is amazing).
2. In Milan eat ossobuco (shank shallow fried in a pan with flour and cooked in brooth) or cotoletta alla milanese (loin fried with breadcrumbs)
3. In Florence the best thing is actually lampredotto.
4. In Emilia Romagna there are a lot of amazing cold cuts like Mortadella and Prosciutto Crudo di Parma.
and basically anywhere in Italy (except for Piedmont) the best meat to eat is pork, not beef, not chicken.
Also you can see in the video a few things that are wrong.
There's nothing wrong with places that show someone making the pasta on the front (and I've been to one place like that that made great, cheap fresh pasta) but obviously you have to look at the price before you go in.
Coperto is almost always there (it is not tipping since it cover the bread and it is a fixed amount that you will know in advance) it will not be there in pizzeria (since usually there is no bread) and some other places where you usually do not get table service (even if you can seat and eat)... but 3€ is a lot (it is usually 2€ or less).
Tortelli with spinach and ricotta are traditional and there is really nothing wrong with them. Spinach and ricotta is a great combo.
The counters that display meat in Italy are by law steel counters, with protective glass and refrigerated so there was probably nothing wrong in that part of the video either.
Bottom line:
1. Make sure you order traditional dishes from the region you are in
2. Check the prices of a restaurant before going in (and maybe also check if the portions are decent). €10 for a first course is ok (if the pasta dish is fresh), €15 is too much (unless there is truffle on top), €1-2 is the classic charge for "coperto" and it should include bread.
3. Don't assume that health rules are not respected just because it is different from the USA. Here in Italy we are much more strict about respecting health rules when it comes to food than anywhere else in the world.
4. Do not order cheese wheel pasta that's not traditional, not something anybody does and clearly a turist trap.
A5 = eh eh eh eh eh
@@LiefLayer Jeez, no wonder Italy's unemployment is so high with walls of comments like that.
@@paradoxparade1 I always write a lot. If you don't want to read just do not read (unemployment in Italy is higher than in US because there are rules, a contract with paid holidays (+ days like Christmas and new year that are paid by default) + paid sick leave + some protections against lay off).
Also enjoy Trump since you Americans like it.
As an italian, I am so sorry for you and the foreigners for all of these tourist traps you tried to have a lunch or dinner in. Some Italian restaurant owners are not smart, they prefer to earn a lot of money robbering tourists with average food, instead of keeping they on their side with good food without scamming.
tourist areas also tend to have high land rents/taxes, so it's not quite so simple an equation
@@defeqel6537Of course it is. You can charge good prices for good food.
@@defeqel6537his concerns aren't about prices, but about quality . Don't be so naive.
@@gostodemaisdaroca4052 Quality comes with a price, otherwise greedy people wouldn't skip on quality if it was all the same financially.
Don't be so naive.
@@jamespohl-md2eq sure, but these places don't seem to be empty even with what they currently offer
Guga: "Meat should always be refrigerated."
Also Guga: "I Dry Aged steak in Small Pox Virus for 1 month."
Little does he know it was actually a refrigerator the meat was laying in.
@@giannisquillace9068 Yeah, Guga showed a bit of ignorance here tbf
yeah, somewhat clueless. didnt even care to google 1 sec.
…In a fridge
Yea in the fridge lmao
I was stationed in Italy with the NAVY for three and a half years in the early 90’s. I made friends with some locals and I got to sample their home cooking. I also would go to various restaurants with my Italian friends and the food was always delicious. I was fortunate to travel a bit through Italy as well as Europe and I would always try to find out where the locals ate when I was in a new place.
Guga reminds me of Mom. To this day I can count on one hand how many times she actually was impressed with food at a restaurant. It's always "Eh, it's OK... I could make this way better at home."
But Guga can actually make it better at home. Do you think Guga would serve a subpar dish?
@@derekdakan3384 Yes? He's an influencer, not much more than that lol
@@derekdakan3384 Just by saying "rabbit food" I know he's not a master chef
Thanks for mentioning the ladies making pasta outside of restaurants thing.
This nonsense exploded in the center of Rome like 2 years ago, never seen anything similar before and I’m from Rome.
I’m always sorry when I see video of tourists robbed or scammed in Italy, so inform yourself before travelling and watch out for pickpockets, scammers and tourist traps.
They copied it from asian restaurants in china that traditionally make the noodles as a show. Anyways, it wouldnt be the first things italians copy from asians
You need to get some locals to advise you on where to go in Italy.
Avoid the shiny places and look for alleys outside of city centers, away from the touristic plazas and monuments.
Ask around where you can eat well at a reasonable price, we will help you out
Kinda interesting how a Touresty Places serve one of the worst foods.....You would think that they would at least serve the Good to Great food, albeit at higher prices...
@@1flash3571 everyone knows that if you go where there are tourists is like that and in every country is like that
@@1flash3571 many of those places are owned by foreigners and people who cant cook, but they stay in business because they have a good location that attracts a lot of tourists. I cant express how much i hate this kind of places because they shine a bad light on all of the italian cousine and scare off potential tourists from returning in italy. (before anybody thinks it, i dont have anything against foreigners owning restaurants but dont make it pass as an original italian restaurant if you cant cook italian dishes!)
@@1flash3571 think of it like this: spots in front or near big monuments costs a lot. And I mean A LOT, that's because of location and visibility. Who can afford places that costs a ton of money? Big investors. People that usually do anything in life but cook. Those people with no experience in cooking or managing a restaurant create some flashy bullshit like "cooking the pasta into the cheese wheel" and then live just by the sheer number of people passing by. If you want to eat good you'll need to find a more secluded location run by people that can do their job but sadly don't have the money to open a restaurant in more costly places
@@1flash3571 Yeah I'm Italian and it makes me mad to hear all of these stories, I also fell in some tourist trap before. It's crazy how many there are. It gives us such a bad image. Imagine your whole life you get convinced Italy has one of the best cuisines and then you go in a tourist trap and base your judgement on that...
😂😂😂 one of the most brutal restaurant reviews I’ve seen. I do appreciate the honesty!
If he was honest, he would have talked to the restaurant management.
Think about it, do we Italians really need to see what a lasagna, a pizza, or a risotto looks like? When you see a restaurant displaying pictures of food, it’s clearly a tourist trap.
@@Lilsauce97 🤯
THIS!!
Hey Guga just for the records, we in Puglia actually use cheese on fish. Our main traditional dish is “riso, patate e cozze” (rice, potatoes and mussels) which comes with pecorino cheese on top.
Next time don’t feel ashamed to request some cheese, it is not that weird in the south
i actually have tried putting fish fillet as pizza topping when i bake pizza, its not bad at all that im wondering why no fish pizzas
@@lqfr8813 white sauce pizza with salmon or smoked fish is a thing.
@@lqfr8813 pizza with salty anchovies is pretty normal in Italy
@@lqfr8813 anchovies?
Thank you for this honest review.
One thing ive learned: Find the most remote place, tucked away in a back alley where noone who doesent KNOW its there would ever go.
THATS where you get the good stuff. Those guys rely on people coming back.
I went to Italy in September and I don't think I got ripped off. You can always ask for recommendations, especially if you're staying in an air bnb. Secondly, look for Italian reviews on google. Third, prices. If a restaurant is charging significantly more than 10€ for a pasta dish, leave. Fourth, look at the customers. If a restaurant has Italians queuing like a pizzeria I saw in Bologna, it's probably good. The same way you want to look for Chinese customers in a Chinese restaurant, etc.
My tip for Florence is a small hole in the wall named “la Garga” best food I’ve eaten in my life!
These are the reasons why we always ask locals where to eat people.
You eat people?
Funny 😂 he didn't mean it like that 😂😂@@RavenNMonster
@@Amir_rahmani-jr commas are important
😀
Yes! I've been to Italy a few times, and always ask hotel staff where to eat. 80% of the time it's good, and the guy that send you gets a small commission too. And they like to recommend good places, so you'll ask them every day where to eat, they'll make the reservation for you and it's a win/win/win.
It also helps if you tell them what it is you want to eat.
General Tourism Tip: Don't go to where the tourists are eating.
I'm surprised that, as an American, he didn't complain about not finding a Mexican restaurant in Florence.
Yep. Go where the locals go. You know.
👍
In a broader sense... don't go to restaurants in the immediate surroundings of the main landmarks and monuments, and this is valid in all Europe
I appreciate your honest and critical reviews
LOOKING GOOD BROTHER! Give this man respect on his fitness journey 🎉
A5 Wagyu for 36 Euro? Red flag. Sound the alarm.
I really appreciate your honesty haha this is really informative and will be helpful while traveling to Italy
Here's the thing, after seeing you in Portugal, altought i thought you generally had a nice experience, I saw you falling tourist trap after tourist trap, so I'm sure italy it's even harder to dodge them. There really needs to be a deep research before going to tourist filled cities.
It's his way to make videos.
it ain't that hard, just go where locals are eating and you're going to be fine
I am Italian and I live in a very touristic city like Bologna, I am starting to believe that he goes to touristic restaurants just to make some youtube contents. He makes very little effort to find places where he can eat proper food. He also struggle to understand that the Italian meats are not only steaks.
As Italian i had very hard time to avoid tourist traps in Lisbon. I don't think it's that hard in italy (excluding Roma and Venezia maybe) but he's just uneducated and choose bad restaurant to make engagement and contents
@@ClaudioINDASTRIA it is very hard even in Florence and Verona, and in several small towns that have huge numbers of foreign tourists (like Alberobello probably). I can see that this process is growing also in my city, Bologna, a place where tourism wasn't so much developed until 10 years ago. Now if you walk around the central area around the "due torri" and "neptune fountain" the most of the restaurants are touristic and, of course, it is also the area where the tourists spend the most of their time when they come here.
Pasta made in front, the best tourist trap indicator in a restaurant in Italy: run away, they're usually done in a backroom and not during rush/service hours.
Also... Pasta alla Ruota (Parmesan wheel), while some good restaurant can do this too it used to be very rare, it's the typical tourist trap because it became quite popular on social networks recently.
He's not that smart..
@@alessandrom7181 because he went to places to show others what to look out for? This is all set up. He obviously just went to places that would be easy for a tourist to find and showed off the issues people can look for and showed the reason you should look out for these things in final product
I think that jab to his intelligence is a bit of projecting. You’re insecure about being unintelligent. Maybe for good reason. Thankfully most issues with intelligence (usually not the actual issue) can be fixed by just stopping to think for a minuet.
This guy knows food. You don’t think he knows how to find good food in a place he’s visiting? But it would be cool to find a decent place that is in the middle of all the touristy areas if possible for convenience.
I like this direction from you Guga!!!!!!!
This video is a great example of why you should do your due diligence research before you travel to find restaurants worth visiting. If you go in blind, don’t be surprised that you get blindsided by ripoffs.
Also of why there are too many tourists who should have stayed home
Nah you can do it on the fly, you just need common travel sense... pasta in a cheese wheel though, thats just stupid, thats gold leaf salt bae steak stupid
Trip Advisor to find the great restaurants... then check online just to make sure. Other alternative if you're not on a budget is the Michelin guide... The Michelin guide has restaurants that are recommended. But they have not earned any stars as yet, so they are reasonably priced. We eaten in many michelin guide restaurants who earned their first star years later and the food is always excellent.
But Guga Is a dou che.
It's annoying when people call Italy the Mexico of Europe. Mexico has much better cuisine 😂
I wonder how Guga's face would look like if he saw the average butcher shop in the markets in México 😂😂😂. There's a reason most people like their steaks well done here, it's a evolutionary habit 😂
Amazing how Guga checked every box on what not to do when looking for a genuine experience in Italy
You got ripped off because you searched for the most „elevated“ restaurants like a coglione.
Ask locals next time.
Especially taxi drivers, they often speak English and know a lot of secrets.
Every country I have ever been to had tourist traps. Always ask the locals where they prefer to go and stay away from the flashy, expensive places.
Depends on what you're looking for.
Are you looking just to eat something? Then avoid all the hipster/flashy places. Usually they have below average food with high prices.
Are you looking for a nice place to have a romantic dinner with your wife? You're gonna have to search for a fancy place and you'll most likely spend a lot.
From what I've seen, all my life here in Italy, the fancy places are correctly represented on Trip Advisor / Google while the "just eat something good and cheap" places are not because usually they are managed by old people that don't even know what a website is.
There's definitely expensive places in European cities that are worth it and serve top food, but they usually require a reservation.
i can not think of any tourist trap restaurant for example in hamburg.
There is simply none. There are "bad" places at some public main places but i dont consider them tourist traps.
Anyone is free to tell me a restaurant in hamburg which is like a real tourist trap
@@TheCaryz the more tourists the more tourists traps. When I went to Indonesia Bali was full of tourist traps, java and Flores were not but that's because most of the tourists go to Bali
@@TheCaryz There are some Fish Restaurants around the harbour area who i would definitely call tourist traps, also some Sushi places, and the Repperbahn in itself is partly a huge tourist trap.
Day 22 of asking guga to dry age steaks in rendang paste
He chould use the Indomie instant noodle flavours/oils. He'd need to open like 1000 packets but I reckon it would be savagely good.
+1 for rendang
Get a life
Yoiiiii
Let's get this in front of Guga
Love the honesty in this video. My one experience visiting Europe a few years ago was all tourist trap after tourist trap. I felt duped and wasted my money. I’m sure there are ways to visit Europe with being stuck at tourist traps. I’ll do my research the next time I go!
When I visited Italy, I kept my senses open. Look where the local restaurants where only Italians go, smell the aroma, listen to how people talk and look at their expressions on their faces, I don't speak or understand Italian as a second or third language. Human body language you can always read. I learned this from being in the Army stationed in Germany and traveling Europe as a young man.
This dude found the tourist traps on purpose just to complain for his videos. Now I'll give in and go to some, but only for the ambiance or views from the location and I will expect average food at best.
@RobertFothergill-u1z good work and research on his part.
4:07 You say that the meat is not refrigerated. But isn't the counter a whole refrigerated area, as you can see from the airing grills?
yes, guga is in fact... yes... just yes LMAO
Plus meat get cooked so whatever is on it gets killed
I love for all Guga’s food passion, he still doesn’t know how to hold a fork & knife. 😂 Looked like a kid cutting that steak. 😄🤟
A grown man talk about how some cut they food ur most bust be souls of the party
@ You write like he holds silverware. I’m surprised the “Translate” option didn’t pop up (I don’t think it would’ve helped). 🤔🤡
@@Mo_Ketchupsit call dyslexia
Totally. When you show such little sophistication, how can you expect me to trust your palate?
Guga "I don't want to offend any Italians"
2 seconds later "It was a rip-off/sh*t/disaster"
Don't worry we are very aware a lot of restautants are shite
Winger, but still has his nose in the trough ! 🧐😜😂
🤌🤌🤌
To experience italian food you either have a local tell you where to go (most likely in a trattoria in the middle of nowhere) or you buy good quality ingredients and make it yourself. i ve fallen for tourists traps myself and i m italian. edit: btw the service charge, or "coperto" is a completely normal thing to have to pay in most places , it usually goes from 1 to 3 euros per person, tho to pay 3 euros it must be either a tourist trap or a really fancy and expansive place like a famous chef's restaurant or something
yes tell him to go to some trattoria
Sadly coperto has increased quite a bit over the last decade. I remember 1/2€ in many pizzerie, now some of them, claiming to be fancier, ask up to 3€. A pizzeria. In southern Italy. Pizza o panino erano gli standard in adolescenza per i prezzi abbordabili, ora li si paga a naso un 20-30% in più
We had some amazing meals in Italy by buying ingredients from the local supermarket, and cooking ourselves. And we had many, many wonderful restaurant meals, by asking the wait staff what was the best item on the menu and what local wine to drink. But we naturally avoid places like those that Guga visited, because I avoid them in my home country, so why would I visit them in another country?
@@claudiofiero8523 quindi hai meno di 30 anni, pensa che per me che sono appena sopra i 40, panini e pizze costano 4x...
Il coperto può anche essere di 5€ o più dipende da cosa ti offrono, hai presente la differenza tra la tovaglietta di carta ed una tovaglia con piatti in porcellana, cristalli e posateria di livello?
Thanks Guga!! You've saved quite a few people a lot of money.
You should do also a video in Italy where you eat very well and cheap and you can trust me ,there are a loooot of places
Tortelloni with spinach being a 0/10 is a crime
I agree. Spinach and ricotta is a great combination.
I don't understand why he ordered something he hates
@@yannik9730 to do this video
@@yannik9730 Sometimes, it's hard to tell if the food was legitimately bad or if Guga just has terrible tastes.
@@asepsisaficionado7376for sure he should start to tone down the way he seasons his discese, his taste buds are all messed up by the amount of salt and heavy seasoning that he always uses! He has a very American style type of taste buds…he became incapable to taste and appreciate simple good fresh ingredients!!
I keep asking some Italian friends to accompany me on a trip to Italy. I just want some inside knowledge to stop me being ripped off, like this guy! Nice video, thanks.
You’re hilarious, that A5 looked like hangar steak to me 🤣
🙏🏻
Allways fun to see someone actually good at food, travelling around the world, testing out different restaurants.
Good at food Who? Can't even avoid tourist traps..😂
@@alessandrom7181 So he is a bad tourist then. Has nothing to do with knowing food and be good at recognizing good food.
If he whent to a tourist trap, and thought the place was fantastic, you might have a point. He didnt though.
he is maybe good with food, but a failure to find a place with good one
❤ Thank you for looking out for us tourists! Great PSA! 😊
Lets change the title " I could not avoid tourist traps so i got ripped of maybe i should get better at picking where i eat "
🙏
I hope the next episode shows Guga favorite meals in Italy!!!
😋😋😋
Thanks for the advice Guga!
Next time you go to Italy, look at the slow food restaurant guide, to avoid those rip off restaurants for tourists.
you have been to the most tourist restaurants ever :D i've never been served pasta out of a parmesan wheel since i pass my holidays there till over 10 years. i've been to one of the best bistecca alla fiorentina restaurants in tuscany and man - you really have to give italy a second chance out of the tourist world ;)
yes there are special restaurants that do serve pasta from a wheel and it is very good I think this guy is just a complainer, he is used to eating hotdogs and hamburgers
@@arrivagabryhe's a chef and not American!
@@angelmartin7310 Brazilian-American and he is not a chef
@arrivagabry He was born and raised in Brazil but you think he eats hot dogs and hamburgers?
@@angelmartin7310 not anymore with all the money he makes, he is not a chef all he does is cook meat mainly steak
I Never had Good Food in Italy 😅😢, same feeling, they ripped me off every time
Gugaman, I love your videos and I’ve watched dozens for years now.
But I’m completely let down by your bad advice here. You come across like a ‘typical American tourist’. I know you’re not that. Things are different in Europe.
I’ve travelled a lot of Italy and I love it. Your findings on poor seasoning on beef would be pretty much universal. I find that Italians don’t use nearly as much salt as we North Americans do. That’s not a fail on the restaurant- it’s a cultural difference. I love salt on my meat and so I’m with you, but you must salt your 5:06 5:06 own if you are used to heavily salted foods.
Also the cover charge is somewhat common. Sometimes it will show as a bread charge. You aren’t expected to tip. If you do, a few euros is what is customary. Not 18% like our side of the pond. This is a win, not a ripoff. You don’t get the same service, and this is the reason why.
The stuffed pasta looked awesome. You are there and I was not so I don’t disagree with your opinion there but the pasta itself looked super thin and amazing- my question to you is how was the pasta? Was it good or was the actual pasta also terrible? Just curious on that one.
Enjoy your travels but try to enjoy the differences- this is why we travel. If it was Florida, why make the effort to go???
He just likes to trash Italy to get views. 🤮🤮
never put parmigiano on fish.. don't drink coke with good food.. order local products not Japanese beef... order vegetable when in season, hence tomatoes only in the summer :)
This!!
Doesn't matter if it's local. Don't charge a premium price if you can't cook it properly. Wagu or not doesn't look like they can cook a steak.
Yes I thought that Coke will get them off side straight up! They didn't know he is a food expert and the Coke is not a good clue.
@@michaelcarey299this! A coke is never drank with lunch in Italy. The only exception is often chosen while eating s pizza (other option with pizza is beer).
The meat is displayed in banco frigo, which is a refrigerated display… in Italy we have the mist strict regulations about food.
Guga - love your vids, personality, production, creativity, energy and deep desire to explore and share!
Here's a tip - next time you go to Italy go in August for Cinghiale (Wild Boar). It's an amazing bonanza of meat of every kind - from roasts to steaks to cold cuts to sausage - all made from Italian Wild Boar. In higher end restaurants you can hand select the steak or roast and they prepare it while you imbibe in fine Tuscan Wines..... Thanks!
August? Everything's closed and all the Italians are away on vacation. Plus it's the hottest month of the year. Get your wild boar in September or June.
@@cjay2 The advantage of August is - that's when actual Italians go on vacation. You meet real italians - not tourists.
Its honestly impressive how you managed to only eat mediocre food in italy
food in Italy is mediocre, on average. ...
you can find good food in any country
@@Sender76 Yep! I'm Italian but live in Australia. Just spent 3 weeks going around Italy and the food was mediocre, even at the places recommended to me by family who have been living in Italy their whole lives. The standard of pub food in Australia is superior to the food I've been having in Italy.
You clearly don't know where to eat.
😂😂 what a bunch of clowns
Towards the end you hit the nail on the head; you didn’t see a single Italian eating at the restaurant. I lived in Livorno for a couple years and loved a restaurant where the menu was written on a chalkboard because it was based on the catch of the day. Sapori di Napoli, Ciros. That is where Italian families went to eat and for extended periods of time. Don’t ever expect to find good Italian food near where the tourists attractions are. Walk a little bit.
Dude those displays °are° refrigerated....
Plus he's complaining the guy came out of the bathroom and went straight to work without washing his hands. I guess he never heard of bathroom sinks. One more thing, you'll see meats hanging at markets in open air. The air in Italy is less humid and therefore less chance of spoilage.
@@valvenator Don't forget he's not eating the meat raw...they're cooking it. exposure to heat over 212F kills all bacteria.
Guga never fails to prove how stupid he is
@@valvenator The air is also saltier due to the ocean.
they dont look refrigerated
Guga, I watched your content from Spain and noticed you missed some of the country’s true meat temples! Spain is an underrated paradise for meat lovers, and with your passion for meat, you have to check these out. There are many more, but here are a few to note: Can Xurrades (Barcelona), El Capricho (León), Casa Julián de Tolosa (San Sebastián), Laia (San Sebastián), Asador Etxebarri (Bilbao), Hundred Burgers (Madrid/Valencia) and Belua (Valencia). You won’t regret it! I love u bro.
Listen to this guy!
What would you recommend in Sevilla?
This! This is why I come to Guga. Where else can you get the straight facts regarding steaks and food in general?
Impeccable reporting, Sir!
Who? This dou che Who doesn't even know or sense If a place Is a touristic trap and never asks to local s? 😂
Food in Italy CAN be great!
This summer I did a little Experiment by myself.
Within a week I bought 3 Bistecci Fiorentina from different sources, each between 1.6 and 1.8kg.
I cooked them sous vide and finished them on a powerful gas Grill (which was available at my accommodation).
Judges were an Italian Nonna, her son, and myself.
#1 was from Falorni, mybe the best butcher in Tuscany, 36€/kg.
#2 was from a local butcher in Castellina in Chianti, 40€/kg.
#3 was from Coop, a local supermarket, 20€/kg
Results: #1 was best (by small margin), #3 came in a little behind, 2# was worst (but still a very enjoyable steak)
Next time I go to Tuscany I'll by my steaks at the supermarket...
I love the coop! (pronounced somewhere between "cop" and "cope") There's quite a large one in Empoli if you know the area.
As an Italian American, I find the best Italian food is made at home.
Me too and i completely agree.. I'm constantly disappointed with restaurants in this regard...😅 first grandma, then mom, then aunt, then me.. i love my own Italian food 😂
@@holistic.health Salute
@@jeffmancuso2715 🙏🏻✨️
thank you, guga ! we need more of that content !
GUGA. Most of those places are tourist traps. As I was stationed overseas and traveled while I was there and you can tell the quality wasn’t there. I avoided my main areas and went to the restaurants that the locals went to. But saying this it’s like that everywhere. You order flounder they give you another type of white fish. 😊
well in the US they charge you minimum 10% service charge and then the City tax ... in Italy, Uruguay etc its called Couvert
It's called coperto in Italian. Most restaurants will charge you for it. Annoying at first to many visitors, but it's a part of Italian restaurant culture you will have to accept.
At least the service charge goes to the waiters, and the wait staff....
@@1flash3571 In most countries, wait staff gets paid like any other worker.
@@alexanderwesterstahl in America you get paid based on performance. That’s why customer service is much better and the waiters are more attentive in America.
Lol in the US. You maybe been to one city like new york, but the US!! 🤣
Nobody in the US charges you 10% service charge you couvert VAT clown
Lovin Guga bustin Italiano bubbles all over town.
U come to Italy to eat wagyu ? And lobster in same random restaurant ? 🤣🤣 guga cmon
yeah next time say to him to go to some chinese restourants and order some good sushilol
next video, he'll complain about the bad sushi in Italy
He told the truth. Doesn't matter what he ordered. Lying about what you serve is intentional and unforgivable.
well.. the meat is cooled. dude guga just has never seen european meat showcases or visited any supermarket. and even if they were not refrigerated, its a traditional and controlled process in italy. the meat of the chianina cows "Bistecca alla Fiorentina" for example is kinda protected against rot and bacteria growth. they put these big chunks there for a certain amount of time, it remains safe.
Guga! Next time you come to Italy I’ll bring you around to taste the best restaurants! And that’s a Trucker’s word😉 my guest obviously
I’m in Florence (since 29 years) and would never eat there! Don’t understand why social media has everyone going to the same mediocre restaurant and sandwich shop…
Sono tutti fissati con l'antico vinaio e porco brado. Il panino bono lo trovi anche alla coop di un paesino in provincia di Firenze.
CRAZY RUSSIAN HACKER REFERENCE ! 4:14
Safety number one prviority 😂
6:06 "ahh a generous amount of pasta" little did he know that was to feed 10 different people 😂
4:52 May I ask why it's a bad sign?
Because they're akin to having a Chinese dumpling lady making dumplings fresh, to lure you in. Or like a fancy chocolaterie/bakery putting a window show.
A lady not a buff guy
@@nocomments.5776 lol no. That’s not it
The pasta cooked inside the parmesan wheel is a classic tourist trap, Guga. No Italian would do that: it actually seems very disrespectful towards such a delicacy. Please stop being, Gugallible and actually read the reviews: if they seem written by bots, they probably are.
This is not Guga's fault. Those are italian restaurants, and that makes criticizing them legit.
Gugallible 🤣 👍
@@greenblack6552 So what if they are in Italy?He choses traps to then complain. He's a douc@e
Not going to lie, I've felt this way about "Brazilian Steak House's" in the US (Miami area). Whenever there is fillet wrapped in bacon on a stick, I'm usually disappointed by the flavor. The touristy Italian food Guga tried did not look up to par, except maybe the T-bones he showed.
at 0:22 that is Polignano a Mare though, near to but not Bari
Ripoffed 😂
I'm from Italy and i can confirm. Restaurant quality is getting lower each year. I really cant find any good restaurant anymore
I'm not sure about Italy, but in many places rents / land taxes are increasing, so restaurants need more customer turnover, resulting in shorter cooking times, or just cost cutting measures. Customers are also less patient. These changes have resulted in poorer meal quality.
And diagonally opposed to the quality - the prices go sky rocket.
I love Italy, as a Swiss citizen I have been there countless times, but this kind of thing gets on my nerves. You take the bad with the good, I will keep going again and again, enjoying all the good Italy has to offer and biting my tongue when I get ripped off again luckily that doesn't happen too often, you learn from experiences.
Next time, come to France, there's a hidden gem in Paris that I know of called "Le petit commine" that I'm sure you're gonna like.
Edit: Forgot to mention that you can get a 30% off on most dishes by reserving a table on TheFork
My my, that place looks good. I'll have to go next time I'm visiting family in Paris. Kudos!
I had food poisoning there: expelled fluids from all the orifices.
@@DrPepperone idk what you ordered but I've known this restaurant and its staff for 6-7 years and never had any issues.
That meat on display is actually put on a refrigerated display. In Italy food regulation is very strict and this is absolutely safe.
Yes, but it does not suit Guga's narrative!
@ I see…
I suppose he was referring to the meat on the bench, not on the display
maybe they dont have fridge with glass in america ?
Guga: I got ripped because I had to pay 3 Euro for table service per person..
Guga: it's ok to tip 25- 30 USD for service in the US
You go into the wrong restaurants
The first warning I got when I got to Italy was avoiding ristorante. They are usually tourist traps. The girl we were renting the apartment from was very vocal about that tips, and we never went to one and stayed to the restaurants with traditionelle or something like that in their name. This was in Rome, but seems like she was correct.
You mean "tradizionale". "Traditionnel/traditionnelle" is French and "traditioneller/traditionelle/traditionelles" is German.
“Ristorante” just means “restaurant” and doesn’t say anything on whether a place is a tourist trap or not
@@DrPepperone True!
If you see anything gimmicky (giant pepper grinder, flashy lights, etc) it’s likely just a money grab and the food isn’t very good.
Seriously u know beef so well.. u should know how much real wagyu cost .. €36 A5 wagyu is a complete scam
Rule of thumb never order Wagyu especially A5 in Europe cos if it’s legit it will cost 3-4x more … enjoy their wines especially in Italy & Spain cos u get fantastic quality at great prices compared to other parts of the world… do proper research and Italy has some of the best food
Eating was the worst part of out recent trip to Italy. It was difficult to find a restaurant with Italians cooking and serving. With a few exceptions, the food was ordinary. Best meals we had were in the rest stops on the Autostrada.
U clearly had planned your trip wrong my friend, in every country there are places where u eat that are not the best, but let me tell you the food in autostrada is one of the worst food u can eat in Italy. So next time ask the locals we are really open about the restaurants or tavole calde that we like
Yeah you should spend more time researching restaurants when traveling. We ate like kings in italy on a recent trip. All local cuisine .
Italian food is sooooo overrated. Anyone with a bit of culinary education would never be blown away by such a bland cuisine.
@@RobertSmith-up9rz you are pretty dull. Culinary education? I am sure you dont know what you are talking about.
@@RobertSmith-up9rz Ok? and where are you from mate?