Oh dear, Strasburg is another tourist trap, their Christmas market is made for tourists.
Itâs Christmas something, what do you expect?
The point is that old historic places are usually nice despite tourists (the excess of them). And there are usually less beaten paths to enjoy without the crowds.
In Taiwanâs cities, towns and villages thereâs nothing to see and you are still surrounded by people because thereâs a giant yellow duck nearby or because there are a few more cats than average.
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All day means 24 hours?
Well, some roma
is like that but as you said there are parts of Roma
BUT, Hsinchu near the cental station is no better
Though some nice food near
Some of it is still there, but more Thai shops I saw
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Italian pizza shop loses it when 16 Taiwanese tourists orders 5 pizzas.
Unfortunately this is a classic case of cultural misunderstanding.
Taiwanese people do not realize this was a major faux pas. In Italy itâs 1 pizza per person. Itâs not really meant to be shared like this at a restaurant setting. Italians also eat pizza with a knife and fork. Ordering 5 pizzas for 16 guests sitting at a restaurant is not appropriate.
Italians are extremely strict on food rules. Itâs really stupid and I find it ridiculous, especially this modern concept of authenticity in Italian food. The owners simply canât grasp other people donât eat like Italians and itâs ok.
For example the restaurant we go to and know the owners know we donât like long courses. I ask them to send it quickly or together. Sending food too fast is considered bad service in Italy but I absolutely hate spending 4 hours for a lunch.
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Why didnt he explain that when they ordered?
Thats pretty low to insult them on video the way he did and call them chinese etc.
Any online hate coming his way is well earned.
He called them shitty chinese
Italians are really weird when it comes to food and the rules surrounding it they have. Sometimes they truly canât grasp other people donât care for their rules and just enjoy it the way they do.
Do Taiwanese order five meals for 16 people in Taiwan? No. That has nothing to do with Italy. You occupy 16 seats; you order appropriately. Itâs just common sense. Making fun of them is obviously wrong, as is wearing glasses under oneâs noseâŠ
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Its not the same, they thought pizza was for sharing like in pizza hut.
You cant fault them when all they know about pizza is the coriander chicken testical BS that is passed off as pizza here.
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I think Europeans and Italians donât understand other people donât see pizza the same way. Itâs not seen as a single meal each individual orders and eats with a knife and fork.
Pizza is for sharing and itâs completely normal to order 5 large or xl pizzas to share between 16 people in other countries.
For non Italian/eutopeans like myself, eating pizza in Italy was a weird experience at first.
For 1, it was weird for me there wasnât sizes in Italy. Itâs all the same size. For non Europeans, they probably were confused by this and unsure how to order not knowing the size. And itâs common for people to mistake Italian Romana style pizza as very big not realizing the crust is really thin so itâs not as big as it looks to finish.
- Pizza is not seen as a single meal you eat in a course in a sit down setting. Itâs more of a sharing eat with your hands by the slice.
Like I said, Italians are weird about food and can can off ignorant of other peopleâs culture when visiting Italy.
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Not trying to defend the guy (publicly mocking guests on social media is never okay!), but the comments in the thread also show a bit of disconnect from reality:
Such arrogance. Why do they assume that anyone visiting the restaurant is starving and want to order a lot of food? Maybe theyâve had a buffet breakfast, as is usual in a package tour with included hotel breakfast. Maybe theyâve just had some streetfood nearby like croquettes or something.
Itâs not a âruleâ anyways. They are the ones paying, they can eat their pizzas the way they want. Why not 5 here and 5 others in another shop? Or maybe they went to eat pasta next. I know I wouldnât buy more at such place anyways.
[âŠ]
Thatâs what baffles me about this whole saga. The staff seems to not understand that the diners could always have ordered zero pizzas. If Iâm in the business of selling something, Iâd welcome every next sale, be it for one or fifty.
Okay. First off, who the hell is ordering their own pizza as a standard? Of course multiple people will share one. Wtf. First time Iâm hearing something like this. Even as an American I would have done the same
Canât expect tourists to know that. They should give a menu in all languages stating that. Iâve seen âminimum amountâ in Taiwan before for example
Do people really expect that itâs perfectly fine to go to a restaurant and only order a minimum amount of food to share just because there isnât a big multi-language sign requesting a minimum purchase and theyâre not feeling hungryâŠ?
I mean I also wonât go to Din Tai Fung with a group of 15 people and then only order 30 Xiaolongbao to share (or not order anything at all because I just want to drink the tea). Or share one hot pot between 5 people because I want to eat something else at another restaurant afterwardsâŠ
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As mentioned. For someone who isnât used to eating Italian pizza, pizza romana style pizza will look huge. But it is not huge because the crust is very thin.
Itâs very likely they didnât realize this and thought it was for sharing. 5 large pizzas for 15 people is rather normal in other countries.
It was a major faux pas on the diners, but restaurants need to understand this if theyâre expecting forign visitors.
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It seems like there is some important context missing here. Sixteen people is a pretty big group to be traveling together, was it a tour? If so, where was the tour guide, and why didnât the guide tell them how to order properly? If itâs just a family or friend group, not a single one of the 16 did their research about how to order?
Also, groups of 16 people can be loud everywhere, but Taiwanese can struggle with situational awareness more than most, were they being loud and acting like they owned the place, totally oblivious to other customers? Maybe their attitude is part of the reason they were mocked rather than advised how to order.
Iâd also be curious to know a bit about the restaurant. Is it part of the Asian-tourist tour-group circuit? Is that a big part of his market, or did these 16 tourists just choose this place randomly? If a chunk of his business comes from catering to tour groups, and now heâs online shaming them, thatâs not a great look.
THIS
Americans and Chinese are louder tbh. Americans especiallyâŠ
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So it does seem to be from a tour. Another Reddit post claims to be one of the guests and a review backs up her claims on what happened.
Another note is this happened outside of Florence. And interestingly enough the pizza place is next to a town called Prato. Prato has the largest Chinese population in Italy. In fact the signs there are in Italian and Chinese with so many of them there. Itâs where many of the âMade in Italyâ products people buy are made, with Chinese cheap labor there 
I wonder if him lashing out has to do with his experiences with the Chinese in Italy.
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to be fair, if I were an older jetlagged person, I would just go straight to the hotel, so the tour guide is a bit of a moron.
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Like this American (or is from Canada?) in Taipei with culture clash?
More on the Pizza story, seems Taiwanese did not understand, when told off they did thumbs up which could be insulting?
Yet, people on Reddit argue that no faux pas was committed because pizza is meant for sharing and ordering one dish per person at a restaurant is a ridiculous expectation.
Some people even argue that itâs totally fine to visit a restaurant and not order anything if theyâre not hungry⊠
For me as a German, the unwritten rule in a restaurant is to order at least one drink per person - and if I go there during meal time also at least one food item per adult.
Not sure if in Italy theyâd also expect one drink order per personâŠ?
I do think itâs much more convenient like it is in Taiwan where I can simply bring my own drinks and not bother with ordering a drink. Or in the US, where I can skip the drink and just receive free water. But that doesnât mean that I can just do the same thing in Europe and then just blame the Europeans for having ridiculous standards.
Completely agree on this! With that many tourists visiting Italy, it wouldnât be too much to ask for more understanding about different cultures. Instead, he directly went nuclearâŠ
If thatâs true and they actually asked first if itâs fine to order less, than that guy is an even bigger asshole. In that case, the blame is 100% on himâŠ
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Italy honestly needs to be more careful. They act like people will always choose Italy no matter what, but that mindset doesnât work anymore. One rude interaction, one viral video, or one overpriced meal can spread online in minutes and change how millions of people feel about the country.
The problem is simple. Italy keeps raising prices without raising standards. You pay âŹ400ââŹ500 a night for a â4-starâ room that wouldnât even qualify as 3 stars in other parts of the world. Meanwhile, in places like Thailand or Vietnam, you get actual luxury, great service, modern rooms, and none of the attitude for the same price or cheaper.
Italy assumes tourists will keep coming because âitâs Italy.â But tourists arenât stupid. People compare value now. They travel more. They talk. They watch video about travel. And once a destination gets a reputation for being rude, overpriced, or bad value, it can fall fast. Italy shouldnât think itâs immune.
If Italy doesnât modernize its hospitality and stop treating tourists like an inconvenience, eventually people will just go somewhere else. And honestly, a lot of us are already starting to feel that way and choose other destinations.
I live in Italy and I always vacation elsewhere when there any many places in Italy Iâd like to visit. But every time I look, do I really want to spend $500 for a 4 star hotel in Sicily that looks old or pay $500 for a luxury villa with a private pool in Vietnam with beach front access. The choice is clear.
Other places have culture, beauty, and good food too.
I agree.
But as a non European, even as someone who understands the cultural norms, I find a lot of it fatiguing.
We just got back from Thailand and one thing we kept saying is how freeing society feels day to day. I donât got to worry about going to a Thai restaurant and be mocked for some faux pas or for the people there to take offense to how I ate or ordered. In fact they will cater to me actively without question.
In Italy, I got to constantly think about all these rules just to go out and eat. Donât hold the fork this way or cut this way. in Asia they might find it funny youâre holding chopsticks wrong. In Europe people will mock you as uncultured.
Ordering cappuccino after 12? Nope, I canât do that because theyâll mock me too.
Putting cheese on seafood? nope I canât do that because the waiter will make shocking disgusting looks and probably tell everyone in the kitchen.
Order 2 primos with a risotto and pasta after because i want to? Sometimes they outright refuse this request.
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