When visitors go out to eat in St Augustine, our local and area seafood dishes top the choices according to a phone poll conducted by Historic City News this year. But everyone doesn’t care about fish or shellfish. When looking for an alternative, many diners choose an Italian pasta dish. A new study reveals that lasagne is Florida’s favorite.
The study, conducted by Cooking School Italy, which provides professional training in Italian cuisine, analyzed “Google monthly average searches” over the 12 months leading up to July 2025 to reveal which ones are the most popular in Florida. The average search volumes for each dish were combined then ranked from highest to lowest. Lasagne ranks first with a whopping 45,251 average monthly searches.
“These findings reveal Florida’s evolving relationship with Italian cuisine. It’s interesting to see which dishes Floridians are most fond of, and lasagne is clearly a standout,” says Andrea Rocchetti, National Director of Cooking School Italy. “Ziti al Forno and Carbonara pasta rank second and third, respectively.”
The top five most popular pasta dishes in FloridaRankPasta dishSearch volume1Lasagna45,2512Ziti al Forno29,5093Carbonara24,2964Fettuccine Alfredo15,3355Cacio e Pepe14,225
Lasagne tops the list with 45,251 average monthly searches. Ziti al Forno is second, with 29,509 average monthly searches. Carbonara pasta follows at third place with 24,296 monthly searches. The remaining top five positions are claimed by Fettuccine Alfredo (the popular American version of the more traditional butter and parmesan fettuccine) and Cacio e Pepe with 15,335 and 14,225 monthly searches respectively.
To make the perfect lasagne at home, remember that the secret lies in the sauce. Tradition calls for a Bolognese ragù made with a soffritto of onions, carrots, and celery, to which tomatoes or tomato sauce and minced beef are added. It’s all about how long you let it simmer. While tomatoes don’t take long to cook, it’s best to let the sauce bubble away for at least 2 to 3 hours to allow the flavors to fully incorporate and the meat to become beautifully tender. As long as you keep it on a low flame it can simmer gently for up to 6 hours.
Data for the monthly average search volume was taken from Google Keyword Planner based on searches over the 12 months leading up to July 2025. The most popular Italian dishes were analyzed based on searches for:” [dish]”, “[dish] recipe”, and “how to cook [dish]”, with each dish’s Italian and English names used. The combined search volume for each dish’s search terms was tabulated and then used to rank the dishes from highest number of average monthly searches to lowest.
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Dining and Cooking