Authentic Italian vs AMericanized Italian food

[annX]

I've read various comments that the food served aboard MSC will disappoint some people, especially Americans, because it is authentic Italian cuisine and Americans are used to Americanized Italian food. I am confused. Can someone elaborate on this and clearly differentiate the two?

Is the same true for all other cuisines, that is , is there an an Americanized French that differs significantly from French? How about Spanish, Portugues, German, etc? Sometimes I get the feeling that this Americanized version of other national cuisines is little more than a way to rationalize bad food.

[Cruisechik]

Food is usually adapted to regional tastes and availability of ingredients. Italian food also varies by regions in Italy. Northern Italian food is very different from Southern Italian food. American cuisine is also adapted in other countries to their tastes, preferences, and availability of ingredients. Ordering a hamburger from a stand in Sweden is a different product than one sold from a stand in the US. The US also has regional interpretaions of foods. A cheesesteak in Philadelphia is far different than a cheesesteak in Atlanta. A biscuit in the Northeast is just not the same as a biscuit from the south. Preferred preparation also varies regionally.

 

That said, here is Wikipedia's (partial) explanation of Italian food:

 

To a certain extent, there is really no such thing as Italian cuisine in the way that one usually understands national cuisines. Each area has its own proud specialties, primarily at regional level, but also even at provincial level. Italian cuisine is not only highly regionalised, it is very seasonal. The high priority placed on the use of fresh, seasonal produce distinguishes the cuisine of Italy from the imitations available in most other countries.

 

Regional differences

 

Roman cuisine, for example, uses a lot of pecorino (sheep milk cheese) and offal (frattaglie, pronounced frattaje in dialect), while Tuscan cooking features white beans, meat, and unsalted bread. Pizza also varies across the county, the crusts of pizzas in Rome are thin as crackers, while Neapolitan and Sicilian pizza is thicker. The influence of Northern Italian cuisine can be seen in French and German cuisines. Piemonte and Lombardia each grow their own different kind of rices, which are used to make risotto. The North of Italy is the home of polenta. Emilia-Romagna is known for lasagna and tortellini (stuffed pasta), mortadella, prosciutto, and parmigiano. Naples (Napoli) is the home of pizza, mozzarella and pastries (babà, sfogliatelle). Calabria's cuisine uses a lot of hot pepper for its distinctive salami (that are common, in several varieties, throughout the country) and uses capsicum. Sicily is the home of gelato (ice cream) and granita but its cuisine also has many influences from Arab cuisine (lemon, pistachio) and also includes fish (tuna, swordfish). Sardinia is famous for lamb and pecorino. Every province (sub-division of a Region) has proper desserts and many other recipes.

 

Northern versus Southern Italian cooking

 

As a general rule, northern and southern Italian cuisines are differentiated primarily by the cooking fat and style of pasta commonly used. Northern Italian cuisine (other than on the coast) favors butter, cream, polenta, Mascarpone, Grana Padano, and Parmigiano cheeses, risotto and fresh egg pasta, while Southern Italian cuisine tends toward Mozzarella, Caciocavallo and Pecorino cheeses, olive oil and dried pasta. Southern Italian cuisine also makes greater use of the ubiquitous tomato. Wines of great renown are produced especially in northern Italy (such as Piedmont's Asti Spumante) but also in southern Italy (just to name one, Marsala).

[Sailure]

I've read various comments that the food served aboard MSC will disappoint some people, especially Americans, because it is authentic Italian cuisine and Americans are used to Americanized Italian food. I am confused. Can someone elaborate on this and clearly differentiate the two?

Is the same true for all other cuisines, that is , is there an an Americanized French that differs significantly from French? How about Spanish, Portugues, German, etc? Sometimes I get the feeling that this Americanized version of other national cuisines is little more than a way to rationalize bad food.

 

From at least one review I read the food is Northern Italian cuisine. That is my favorite kind of Italian food.:)

[bobar]

when i sailed on the melody 3 yrs ago the food was a good representation of all italian food..i am not a fish eater but they had some great and varied fish. they even had rabbit one night. all the pastas and risottos were excellent,as were the breads..i hope it's as good on my 3/10 opera cruise as it was then...:cool:

[bobar]

i hope the food on my 3/10 opera cruise is as good as my cruise on the melody 3 yrs ago..that was also a southern caribean cruise and it seamed they did a good job of representing all regions of italy on their food. I am not a fish eater but they had some excellent and nicely varied fishes. they even had rabbit one night..they're pastas and risottos were excellent and their bread outstanding...counting the days till 3/10

[bigmike7]

Yo-

 

Our experience - on our two eleven day cruises on the 'Lirica' - were that they featured a different Italian dish every dinner from different regions in Italy - and had other selections also (prime rib; medallions of beef; pork, chicken and turkey main dishes)-

 

We found the food to be very good on both cruises and better in taste and quality than some other cruises we have taken-

 

Happy Cruisin'

 

Mike

[texast518]

WELL DONE & well said Cruisechik!!!!

[teegeezfun]

i enjoyed reading your bit of research on the italian cuisine. i look forward to visiting italy perhaps this summer, so i am trying to learn what i can about the regions and the art.

 

i have been reading with interest the various posts about the food on msc. i have been a bit insulted as an italian by some of these comments. the folks from qvc seem to be the most nasty. i can't help feeling that they are seeking a refund on their overpriced cruise fares by kamakazi methods on the internet, trashing msc way beyond what it deserves to this end.

 

people, i am sorry qvc ripped you off and charged you double the going rate for your cruise fares, because this is exactly what happened. i don't shop qvc because every time i tune in i see that the items they are selling are way way overpriced compared to what i can get locally. your cruise fare was no different.

 

finally, strictly by chance my husband and i met the couple that paid 99 dollars for their extra week on the cruise. do you understand that they paid full price for the 11 nite that followed your cruise. it's called a loyalty promotion, so get over it.

 

anyway, back to the food.

 

as an italian, there were at least 3 things i ate on this cruise that were beyond outstanding. not good, not great, but superb, outstanding and awesome. i formed this opinion because i know the level of skill needed to prepare these items and i was impressed by the result i saw on the cruise ship. you non italians or italians whose mothers didn't take food as seriously as mine perhaps would never have noticed these items and respected the level of expertise needed to produce same on a CRUISE SHIP.

 

the first is rice balls, which are a concoction of rice, meat sauce and peas with cheeses formed into a ball and deepfried with a crunchy coating. i make these at home during the holidays and they are not easy to make. i was deeply impressed that they were presented by the thousands to us during a neopolitan luncheon buffet on deck on day 4. not only were they good, they were fantastic.

 

another item that i found to be phenomonal was the polenta with sausage and cheese served during the galley buffet. just like mine. outstanding, and gratifiying to see that real italians eat this too and the recipe my mother taught me was authentic.

 

there were other items like these two things that greatly impressed me thus providing bright spots on a menu that lacked luster on many other occasions, JUST LIKE ANY OTHER CRUISE LINE...

 

i have never before rated all food items on a cruise ship as "fantastic." only selected things on any line i have sailed have impressed me. example, the service and food i received at oceanliners specialty restaurant on celebrity was rated as outstanding, the individual lemon souffles served on carnival were rated as outstanding. i base this on level of complexity needed to create this dining experience.

 

perhaps you non italians missed these things or if you did try them you took them for granted, but as an italian i was delighted. nuff said...

[joybaby]

Thanks for the excellent food report. Sailing and looking for adventure on the 3/10 opera.

[caviargal]

 

as an italian, there were at least 3 things i ate on this cruise that were beyond outstanding. not good, not great, but superb, outstanding and awesome. i formed this opinion because i know the level of skill needed to prepare these items and i was impressed by the result i saw on the cruise ship. you non italians or italians whose mothers didn't take food as seriously as mine perhaps would never have noticed these items and respected the level of expertise needed to produce same on a CRUISE SHIP.

 

the first is rice balls, which are a concoction of rice, meat sauce and peas with cheeses formed into a ball and deepfried with a crunchy coating. i make these at home during the holidays and they are not easy to make. i was deeply impressed that they were presented by the thousands to us during a neopolitan luncheon buffet on deck on day 4. not only were they good, they were fantastic.

 

another item that i found to be phenomonal was the polenta with sausage and cheese served during the galley buffet. just like mine. outstanding, and gratifiying to see that real italians eat this too and the recipe my mother taught me was authentic.

 

there were other items like these two things that greatly impressed me thus providing bright spots on a menu that lacked luster on many other occasions, JUST LIKE ANY OTHER CRUISE LINE....

 

 

As an Italian who has visited Italy 15 times and was raised in the restaurant business, I found the food on MSC to be excellent much of the time, and good the rest. I did not use the buffet so cannot comment.

 

In the mornings, they brought us thinly sliced proscuitto and crispy rolls. The eggs were excellent and perfectly poached.

 

The risottos were excellent, as was the cioppino, the coniglio arrosto, the polenta (various preparations) the fegato, the salad and breads.

 

It was the best food I have had on a cruise in many years.:)

[rollingstone]

One of our friends sailing with us on the 3/10 sailing will be thrilled over the food reports. His name is Michaelangelo (no kidding!) Need I say more?

Nancy