Do you enjoy pineapple on your pizza? Should you?

We’re all entitled to our own tastes, but they might offend others. Is that our fault? No! If you want to eat French toast with black olives and pour orange juice in your coffee, who am I to stop you? As long as you’re enjoying yourself and having fun, there is no harm being done. Sure, I might wonder just what happened in your life that led you to have such specific tastes, but I would never try to stop you. I might even try a bite to see if you were onto something. But not everyone is so open-minded. Food means a lot. It has so much cultural resonance, and holds so many memories. Food is how we relate to one another, how we share ourselves and our stories, and it connects us to where we come from. Some cultures are rightfully super protective over their cuisine. Italy is definitely one of those places. 

If you’ve ever been to Italy or hung out with Italian people, you know they don’t play when it comes to food. If you try to drink a cappuccino after breakfast or try to sprinkle some parmesan on your Branzino, then you will quickly learn that you’re wrong, you were born wrong, and you will always be wrong. They have their rules, and they’re sticking to them. And that’s their right to do, as a culture. You wouldn’t go to Japan and ask them to melt some cheddar over their sashimi.