Few cuisines are as universally beloved as Italian. With menus full of comfort food dishes like lasagna and chicken parm, Italian restaurants seem to have something for everyone. But there’s something they don’t always seem to have: healthy food choices. But don’t despair! The tips below will help you know how to order so you can relish real Italian, while still toasting “salute” to your health.
Ordering antipasti
Here’s how to kick your meal off on the right foot.
- Dip your bread in oil, not butter. Both are sources of fat, but olive oil has healthy monounsaturated fat while butter has saturated. Just don’t soak the bread entirely; one dip is enough.
- Watch out for anything “fritto.” That word means the food is deep fried. So instead of ordering fritto misto, an appetizer of breaded and fried seafood and veggies, go with grilled calamari or caponata, a Sicilian dish of eggplant, garlic, peppers and other vegetables served as an appetizer.
- Don’t overlook soup. Traditional Tuscan and Florentine soups, with combinations of escarole, beans, pasta, and sausage, can be good alternatives to meat-and-cheese dominant antipasti.
- Switch your salad. Caprese salad, which is a mix of tomatoes, basil, and fresh mozzarella topped with olive oil, can be a good starter — if you go easy on the cheese and oil. But if you’re going to have cheese with your entrée, consider ordering a peppery arugula salad with balsamic vinegar and tomatoes to start instead.
- Turn your appetizer into a meal. It’s perfectly fine to make a dinner of antipasti. You can pick one indulgence, like arancini (fried risotto balls), and balance it with a number of veggie-focused selections that aren’t fried.
Picking pasta and main courses
No matter which dish you’re drawn to, find out simple strategies to lighten it up here.
- Go halfsies on pasta. Often, it’s not the pasta itself, but the portion that is most destructive to a healthy diet. You can order a half portion or ask your server to box up half in advance for you to take home.
- Fill your plate with air. A hollow pasta, like ziti, will appear to give you a larger portion size than solid pasta, like fettuccine. And that may help you eat less of it while still feeling satisfied. The opposite is true of risotto, which is so dense that you’re likely to eat more.
- Have your penne with protein. If it’s an option, pay to add chicken or shrimp to your pasta. By adding protein, you’ll find that you stay satisfied for longer after the meal.
- Reconsider simple marinara. Yes it’s the classic tomato sauce loved by kids, but it can also be a lighter option than a heavy meat sauce like bolognese or creamy sauces like carbonara or alfredo.
- Be stingy with the cheese. An ounce of Parmesan cheese adds 4 Points — and it can easily get lost when mixed into a dish. If you want some, ask the waiter to grind a bit on top of your pasta, where you’re more likely to taste it.
- Think about an alternative pasta. Whole wheat pasta has more fiber than the kind made with white flour, so it’s a good choice if the restaurant has it available. But don’t be overly tempted by gluten-free pasta. It’s not necessarily healthier or lower in calories. Gluten-free foods were developed for people who have gluten intolerance (or celiac disease). Unless you can’t tolerate gluten, there’s no benefit to ordering this pasta.
- Get your stuffed pasta in a different sauce. Stuffed pastas like ravioli and tortelloni are usually filled with ricotta cheese or meat, and a typical restaurant portion can run 17 Points or higher. Consider asking for it in marinara instead of alfredo or pesto — or ask for it to be served in broth instead ("en brodo") to save even more Points.
- Look past the pastas. Head to the “secondi” section of the menu to find your meat dishes, which may have some healthier options. Grilled chicken or grilled veal chops can be a good choice, especially if you get any sauce on the side.
- Let seafood be the star. Fish like branzino show up on a lot of Italian menus and are great sources of lean protein. In one of the tastiest (and lightest) preparations, the chef encrusts the fish in salt and bakes it. When the salt is cracked and removed before serving, it reveals moist, succulent steamed fish, usually served with a touch of olive oil.
Finishing strong
The “dolce,” or dessert options will likely include more decadent options, like tiramisu and cannoli, but those can run you upwards of 15 to 24 Points. If you really want a bite, order one for the table to share. Otherwise, get a small gelato (8 Points per half cup) or take a lesson from the Italians and request sliced strawberries with aged balsamic vinegar on the side. The sweet/bitter combination makes it a perfect meal-ender.
Get smart about sauces
Knowing what sauce to choose can go a long way when you’re trying to eat healthier. While there are many varieties of pasta sauce, they fall into these main categories:
- Tomato/marinara
About 2 Points per half cup
Simple tomato sauce (known as salsa al pomodoro in southern Italy, or marinara in the United States) is usually the lowest-Point choice. Adding meat (making it a Bolognese) or cheese can double the Points value. - Vodka sauce
About 5 Points value per half cup
This is really just marinara sauce with heavy cream, butter, and vodka, but people think of it as its own variety. - Olive oil-based sauces
About 7 Points value per half cup
Most “white” sauces that aren’t made with cheese (like alfredo) use olive oil as the base and then cut it with white wine or broth. A typical white clam sauce can run about 6 Points value per half cup. - Pesto
About 8 Points value per quarter cup
This Northern Italian sauce is made with olive oil, pine nuts, garlic, basil, and Parmesan cheese. While it can be high in fat, the strong flavor will let you use much less of it than you would marinara sauce. - Alfredo
About 16 Points value per half cup
Made with heavy cream, butter, and Parmesan cheese, this sauce comes with the highest Points value. If you love Alfredo sauce, try to balance the fat by choosing a dish with vegetables or protein, like pasta primavera with chicken.
The bottom line
Italian restaurants, with their flavorful, comforting dishes, are super popular places to dine out, but they aren’t always the healthiest. Figuring out what to order can feel confusing, especially with Italian words making it hard to decode what a dish really is. When in doubt, ask your server how something is made and what substitutions can be done. For instance, having ravioli in broth instead of a cream sauce or getting chicken added to your pasta dish to up your protein can serve your health and weight loss goals well.