SALT LAKE CITY – Many Utahns love Italian food. But our typical pasta meal, complete with bottomless breadsticks, differs in many ways from the authentic experience. With the Olympic spotlight on Milan-Cortina, Marco Stevanoni is the perfect food guide. He’s a former Olympian and now owner of the charming Salt Lake restaurant, Veneto. Olympic beginnings (Aperativo) Stevanoni not only skied for the Winter Olympics in 2002, but he was the poster child for the Olympic spirit, with his picture projected on buildings. “I came to train for the Olympics in 2002 and received a scholarship from the University of Utah for the ski team. Then when I was done skiing, I met my beautiful wife, and Utah became my home,” Stevanoni said. “(They) did a photoshoot advertising the Olympics and they picked me and I got a nice picture on a very large building in Salt Lake.” Italian food and traditions are a labor of love for Stevanoni. “There are a lot of things you can spot on a tourist rather than someone who really enjoys the Italian culture,” he said. So who better to prepare KSL’s Olympic team for the Italian dining experience? We closed the menus and trusted him to serve us his specialties. And we learned five things that stand out from American dining “Italian Style.”
Lesson #1: Italian dinners take time.
“For Italians, it’s really a time to sit and relax, so nobody’s in a hurry,” Stevanoni said. “Dining should not take less than two hours.” Well, nobody, except a news team with a 9 p.m. news deadline. We already failed our first tourist test.
Lesson #2: No Ice.
Some Italian restaurants don’t have ice even if you order it. “The one thing you’re not going to find in Italy is ice with water,” Stevanoni said. “Room temperature (water) for Italians is preferable because … the cold, when you eat, it stops your digestion.” So lukewarm water is a health consideration.
Lesson #3: Authentic Italian meals don’t start with bread.
“One of the pet peeves in Italy is someone sitting down and saying, ‘Where is my bread?’ and well, that comes later,” Stevanoni said. Italians also don’t dip the bread in olive oil, according to Stevanoni. “There is a tradition of Scarpetta. It means you clean the plate with the sauce of your pasta with the bread,” Stevanoni said.
Lesson #4: Meals come in courses.
One of the biggest differences between American dining and a traditional Italian meal is that it is served in courses, not all as one big entree. Stevanoni explained this as he served a delicious leek and pumpkin soup served in tiny cups, followed by small plates of ravioli with beets and cheese sauce. “In Italy, you never order everything at the same time,” Stevanoni said. “You want to sit down and start with aperativo or appetizer, then you order the first course.”
Lesson #5 Don’t even think of cutting the pasta.
Italians don’t cut their pasta noodles to make them easier to cook or eat. Nor do they swirl the fork using a spoon. They use the side of the bowl to help manage the pasta. “Don’t ever cut the pasta with a knife,” Stevanoni said. “It’s very disrespectful to the chef, to the tradition, and once you break the pasta, you change (the) texture.” Pasta al dente is more than just a preference, Stevanoni adds. Less-cooked pasta takes longer to digest, slowing the glycemic spike from the pasta. “Don’t break the pasta, don’t break the pasta,” he said. Above all, take the time to savor the simple, fresh ingredients that are a hallmark of good Italian food, so that it is not just a meal, but an experience.
Related: Team KSL puts ice skating skills to the test ahead of Olympics in Milan-Cortina
Dining and Cooking