from what ive been told(by very reliable people) and seen, Robert, there are slices cut and served in some places in Italy
This whole notion of what is traditionally done in Italy is a bit strange.
Not to sound like Trump, but lest we forget weāre in Uh-Mare-REE-Ka.
I mean I get that most Italians serve pies uncut, but Italians also donāt use ice cubes in water (or any liquids), and they also generally donāt do cocktails.
So should Felix not serve ice water? And dispense with their cocktail program? All in the name of Eye-Tal-EE-An authenticity?
Thatād be fucking stupid.
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I recall them at Bucato and not being wowed by them necessarily; I would say they are significantly improved at Felix.
I actually donāt think they serve ice water lol
And I would be fine without them letting go of the cocktail program personally. It doesnāt seem like it fits the food very well to me. But I get the point that they are already making some concessions I guess.
Emilia-Romagna, Tuscany, Veneto, Umbria, Lazio
Hmm, so you havenāt even been to the northern parts? No Alba or Piemonte? No Milan or anything in the lake district?
Iām not sure the places you listed (which to my mind seem like a family trip to the must see spots of Italy) constitute traveling extensively. So perhaps itās unnecessary to imply that because somebody hasnāt eaten food in its āmotherlandā that they canāt possibly know a good version from a bad one.
Curious, but do you think Funke has potentially over-extended himself with this menu? Covering so many regions and what not? Iād be skeptical as hell if some French joint was serving dishes from Paris, Lyon, Nice, etc.
If it werenāt Funke, Iād be worried.
Thatās not necessarily what I was saying. I was saying that those things exist in Italy. It seemed like the claim was more about how a pasta shouldnāt taste like American BBQ because itās ānot Italianā as opposed to āthis is a bad version of an Italian dishā.
I wasnāt trying to say I am an expert on Italian food, just that Iāve eaten stuff in Italy that corresponds to some things people seem to be finding āout of lineā at Felix, when in reality they may just not be represented in Italian restaurants.
Naturally anyone is free to hate whatever they want, though.
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I am not sure honestly, perhaps he has somewhat. It does seem incredibly ambitious.
The regional variance is kind of confined to the pastas, though it seems like. Maybe more time will tell. It may depend upon whether youāre mainly concerned with the pasta itself, or the various sauces.
It will also be a possible overextension to really change pastas out that frequently as opposed to just doing things in a more concentrated form and perfecting them.
For nowā¦it seems like things taste pretty remarkable to me. As usual, I am most likely in the minority, though.
Ehh I know we both loved Bucato and I know we both love Bestia so I know that our Italian tastes definitely overlap. Itās just interesting to me that I feel a few people on FTC have mentioned pasta dishes at Felix that werenāt exemplary.
Perhaps itās the cloud of nostalgia, but I cannot remember a pasta dish at Bucato I didnāt find wonderful. But I also donāt remember Bucato aiming to take us through every single town in Italy, you know?
Iām not sure. I recall there being a lot of variation (and changing pastas) at Bucato. It just wasnāt so explicit. Maybe Iām wrong.
As I recall, Bucato received massive amounts of criticism as well, and many people had gripes about the pastas. I believe we are in the minority who just find nearly everything Funke does with pasta to be awesome.
That being saidā¦I need to return next week, he has upped the portion of the pastas significantly, which I suppose is nice in a certain sense lol
Iāll be interested to see how they are doing during a weekday service, though.
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In Italy, when you sit down in a pizzeria with table service, you get your own pie, made to order, uncut. There is pizza a taglio, but thatās rectangular and sold as a snack or to go, usually by weight.
Iād certainly go out of my way to dine there if they did everything allāItaliana.
Hi @ipsedixit,
I donāt even remember the Blossoms at Bucato. 
We mightāve ordered them once? (or maybe skipped them.) But Iād say the Squash Blossoms at Felix are better than the ones at Pizzeria Mozza (at least as of 10 - 11 months ago). Hopefully they can remain consistent (swapping out the oil, frying at the right temperature, etc.).
Thank you for the review and pics. Iām going in a week and super exited to see that amazing orecchiette that I was obsessed with when it was served at Bucato. It has to be one of my top ten favorite dishes of ALL TIME. The texture of the pasta was addictive and satisfying and the sauce was so perfectly balanced and assertive enough to stand up to the sturdy pasta. And I agreee about the pesto being meekāof all the pasta dishes at Bucato, i thought that was the weakest. I wonder if he is serving the excellent hand-rolled maccheroni these days? I remember that being served with a ragu of some kind (I think rabbit?) and it was definitely one of the more memorable combinations from Bucato. Again, itās all about the textureāsupple and delicate, yet structured. I still remember it to this day, some four/five years later. Really excited about the upcoming carbo-load!
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Thatās the classic Pugliese way to serve orecchiette, though theyād typically use either anchovies or cheese rather than both.
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The maccheroni with rabbit ragu was incredible at Bucato. That is another pasta I hope he brings back besides the bianco ragu!
Hi @soniabegonia,
Thanks! Iām looking forward to your thoughts when you go. Hope you like it. 
and I definitely enjoyed their Orecchiette (both sauces that came with it were wonderful).
I never got a chance to try their hand-rolled Maccheroni, but I hope they add it on the menu soon (or rotate it in as the weeks go on). Thanks.