25 Essential Words You Should Know When Dining At An Italian Restaurant

If you've never heard of affogato, you'll want to try it after reading about it now. It is a cross between a drink and a dessert, made by combining espresso and ice cream.

Once you understand that affogato means "drowned," you'll understand why this treat earned its name. An espresso shot is poured over a scoop of ice cream, effectively drowning it. It is best enjoyed when the espresso shot is poured over the ice cream immediately before it is served so that the ice cream is still semi-solid when you enjoy it.

While you may hear the term antipasto and think it refers to a kind of pasta, it is more of an appetizer. Meaning "before the meal," an antipasto platter typically consists of a few different items. Depending on the restaurant you order from, you may find some combination of sliced deli meats, olives, marinated red peppers or artichoke hearts, sliced or shaved cheese, nuts, or bread on the platter.

In addition to serving as an appetizer to a meal, an antipasto platter is often artfully put together with an emphasis on presentation. Taste, texture, and color are all considered when deciding which foods to add to the plate.

Bolognese,cream (pronounced bow-luh-NAYZ, not boh-log-NESE,) is a ragù sauce whose name is associated with the city of Bologna, Italy. It differs from a traditional tomato sauce because it typically contains more vegetables, like celery, onions, and carrots. White wine and milk are also added to the sauce, giving it a distinct taste and a creamier texture than regular sauce.

Different meats can be added to a Bolognese sauce, with veal, beef, and pork being among the most common. Another difference between Bolognese sauce and other spaghetti sauces is that it is most commonly served with thicker pasta, such as tagliatelle or fettuccine.

Burrata's taste and texture are as smooth as its name. It is a creamy and utterly delicious Italian cheese best enjoyed at room temperature. The cheese is made by hand using milk from buffalos in Apulia, Italy.

At first glance, burrata may look similar to fresh mozzarella, another delectable Italian cheese. However, some key differences exist between mozzarella and burrata cheese, one of the most important being the extra creamy center in burrata.

The literal translation of gamberetti alla cream is "creamed shrimp," and that is a pretty accurate description of this Italian dish. Peeled and deveined shrimp are cooked in butter before being smothered with a rich sauce made of heavy cream, butter, garlic, and other seasonings.

This delectable Italian recipe was originally made in Venice, a coastal city with plenty of fresh seafood. If you like shrimp, and you happen to spot it on an Italian restaurant menu, you'll want to add it to your list.

Gnocchi are scrumptious little dumplings made with mashed potatoes, eggs, and flour. Wheat or semolina flour may be used depending on the specific recipe. Some variations can also feature cheese or herbs.

The soft dumplings are typically served with sauce. You may notice they have little ridges along the side, designed to help more delicious sauce adhere to the potato pasta for flavorful bites.

OK, you probably already know what lasagna is. But do you really understand everything that makes this traditional dish so special? Unlike many other pasta dishes, which feature short or skinny noodles mixed with sauce, lasagna is a layered dish that uses long, rectangular noodles.

Traditional recipes feature layers of noodles along with marinara or meat sauce, mozzarella, and ricotta cheese. Sometimes, other sauces or cheeses may be added to the mix. For example, some varieties add pesto, radicchio, or béchamel sauce to the lasagna for a unique or regional take on a classic.

Is a true Italian meal really complete without bread? Perhaps not, and that's precisely where pana (bread) comes in. There are several different types of Italian bread, including a few that you're likely to come across in an Italian restaurant. Focaccia is a flatter bread that is made using olive oil and baked in a sheet pan instead of a loaf pan.

Ciabatta is another popular choice. The rustic loaves have a crispy outside and a chewy center. You may see ciabatta served with the bread service, but it can also be used to make a delicious Italian sandwich.

The next time you visit an Italian restaurant, you may be lucky to find vitello alla parmigiana, pollo alla parmigiana, or melanzane alla parmigiana on the menu. Also known as veal parmesan, chicken parmesan, or eggplant parmesan, these are cheesy, saucy, and mouth-watering entrees. They are made by flouring and frying the meat (or eggplant), topping them with marinara sauce and cheese, and baking them in the oven.

Traditionally, parmigiana was made with just eggplant. This recipe's exact origins are unclear, though you can find some different takes on it in various regions of Italy. After Italian immigrants introduced the dish, variations made with breaded chicken or veal became popular in the United States and other countries.

Prosciutto may mean dried ham in Italian, but it should not be confused with the regular deli ham you can buy at the grocery store. This special meat is sourced from only the pigs' hind legs. One variety of the meat, prosciutto cotto, is cooked while prosciutto crudo is not cooked, but is aged and cured, often for years. The length of time the meat cures, along with the specific seasonings that are added during the process, will all impact the overall taste of the prosciutto.

Prosciutto di Parma is highly regarded as one of the best varieties. It can only be made in Emilia Romagna using a specific type of pigs and following strict guidelines regarding air quality and curing time.

Sfogliatelle (pronounced sfow-lee-uh-TEH-lay) is a flaky Italian pastry that can offer a sweet ending to your dining experience. While sfogliatelle is thought to have been accidentally created by a nun at the Santa Rosa in Conca dei Marini convent on the Amalfi Coast in the 17th century, today, the treats can be found across Italy and several other countries.

Sfoglia, which means layers, seems like a fitting name for these pastries, consisting of thin layers of flaky dough. The real treat, however, lies inside these layers, where you'll find sweet ricotta cheese and semolina. Yum!

Tiramisù is another Italian word you've probably heard but may not know exactly what it means. Tiramisù translates to "pick me up," and thanks to espresso in its ingredients list, this decadent, layered dessert can do just that.

Tiramisù is traditionally made with ladyfingers, though some versions use sponge cake. The dessert also features layers of mascarpone cheese mixed with sugar and eggs and espresso-dipped ladyfingers.

Zabagli-what? Zabaglione (pronounced zuh-buh-glee-OWN) may sound like a strange word, but trust us, you'll want to remember it to order it the next time you spot it on a menu.

Three basic ingredients — wine, egg yolks, and sugar — combine to create a special treat for your tastebuds. Zabaglione is made by whisking the ingredients together over a bath of simmering water. After a few minutes of whisking over the heat, the ingredients emulsify, creating a thick foam that may be served over a pastry or a slice of cake or combined with some heavy whipping cream. As you can probably guess, the type of wine used to make zabaglione will greatly impact how it tastes, so you may find many variations of this recipe at different restaurants.