Out and about in Naples in the evening
From our editorial team
Time is often in short supply in Germany. People eat between appointments, standing up at lunchtime and looking at the clock in the evening. In Italy, on the other hand, eating is not a break from life - it is life.
Eating there is a small ceremony, a sequence of moments that all have their place. It's not about rules, but about attitude: about the awareness that enjoyment has something to do with presence.
1. the dress code of enjoyment
You get dressed for dinner. Full stop. Not because you have to, but because it's nice. When you go out for dinner in Italy, you change your T-shirt, fix your hair and put on perfume. Whether it's a simple trattoria or a big dinner - you honour the moment by preparing yourself.
From north to south: this is how different Italian cuisine is
Italy tastes so good
The display in a late-night pasticceria in Naples Pizza from Naples: how to do it right! Once fresh seafood on the Adriatic A lemonade stand in Naples Sweet seduction in Campania Once mixed starters in Campania Antipasti in Campania 
Ravioli in sage butter in Venice - delicious! PIadine from a small snack bar in Rimini An ice cream parlour in Florence
What Italy tastes like in autumn: pasta dishes for chilly evenings
2. waiting for the performance
A table is not a matter of course, but part of the stage. In Italy, you don't just sit down, you wait for the waiter to nod or say something: Prego. Then the performance begins. This has nothing to do with etiquette, but with respect. Every evening is a little play - and you don't play before the curtain goes up.
How Italy drinks coffee - and why it tastes different everywhere
3. no room for time pressure
When you go out to eat with family or friends, you stay - sometimes for hours. In Italy, there are no 90-minute slots like in German city restaurants. You eat, talk, order another espresso. And then maybe another grappa. No stress, no looking at the clock. Only the moment counts.
An end to the grey: how to make your everyday life feel like Italy again
4. conversations that linger
In Italy, people talk about food when they eat. About yesterday's menu, about the next visit to the restaurant, about the sauce from the nonna that nobody can make quite like this. It's a cycle of memories and anticipation - and perhaps another reason why everything tastes a little better here.
What Italy tastes like in autumn: pasta dishes for chilly evenings
5. final applause in community
When the meal is over, you don't pay individually. No "I only had the salad", no collecting seven times. Everyone chips in, the waiter collects once - the ensemble leaves the stage together. One last espresso, and then maybe one more. Then the curtain falls - and everyday life goes on.
