Wedding With a View Blog

Whether you’re in the beginning stages of determining your budget, or if planning for your wedding in Italy is already in full swing, you’re bound to come across some food-related terms that leave you feeling more than a bit confused.  Don’t despair! Wedding With a View is here to de-mystify reception meal terminology and give you the run down on Italian-style dining.  Read on for some of the essential concepts you’ll need to plan that special evening of Italian culinary bliss for you and your guests.

The most important thing to understand is that, unlike many other cultures, Italians like to eat their meals in courses: antipasto (appetizer), primo (first course) and secondo (second course).  This separation of the various courses of your wedding meal can be especially nice in the sense that it encourages guests to slow down and enjoy the food, and each other’s company. In this day and age, the antipasto is a universally understood concept—a little something to wake up the palate and stave off serious hunger pangs.  If you plan your wedding in, say, Portofino, you might treat guests to a warm salad of tender calamari, shrimp and fresh red peppers tossed with olive oil.  In Tuscany, traditional antipasti include toasted rounds of hearty bread topped with chopped fresh tomatoes and thinly sliced cured meats such as prosciutto and salami.  It’s at this point in the meal that things can potentially get confusing…why don’t the meat and the pasta come on the same plate?!  In Italian culinary tradition, the appetizer is always followed by the primo, the first course which is generally pasta, risotto or a soup of some sort.  Next comes the secondo, made up of a fish or meat dish with vegetables and/or a salad on the side.  (Of course, couples who are worried that their wedding guests will be too thrown off by this succession of courses can speak to their planner and arrange for a different setup).

Now that you’re fully versed in the Italian tradition of antipasto, primo, secondo, it’s on to the wedding cake!  In communicating with your planner about the cake, she may give you pricing for a “traditional Italian wedding cake.”  For those of you going, “What?!?!,” allow us to explain.  When you walk into an Italian pasticceria (bakery) and ask for a wedding cake, they will make a millefoglie (thousand layers), a dessert made of thin, flaky pastry layered with an abundance of fresh cream and many times either chocolate or berries.  The Italian millefoglie is simple and delicious, and its shape and presentation can be personalized to look appropriately elegant.

Don’t worry, we haven’t forgotten about the drinks part of this equation.  Generally a basic, per-guest pricing for your wedding reception meal includes an “aperitivo.”  An aperitivo is a much-loved tradition in Italy, and is basically nothing more than a cocktail hour with various canapes and lightly alcoholic drinks.  Most common are prosecco-based, refreshing choices such as the bellini or rossini (sparkling wine mixed with peach nectar or strawberries, respectively) and cocktails combining Campari or Aperol with carbonated mixers.  Of course, for your wedding day, the aperitivo can be tailored to fit your particular vision.

Last but certainly not least is the term “table wine,” another item usually included in most basic wedding reception pricing. Table wine merely implies a standard wine, most suitable to be combined with a meal, chosen by the caterer or the reception venue.  One of the best things about planning your wedding in Italy is the fact that table wine is almost always a safe bet…in fact, some venues produce their own wine and use it as the standard choice for such occasions.

Hopefully this brief journey through the most commonly-used Italian wedding cuisine lingo has been helpful (and hasn’t left you feeling too hungry!). Have more questions? Just drop us an email at jessa@weddingwithaview.biz.