Now I am curious which restaurant you visited and what you were missing compared to Italian redtaurantsyin Germany. For us, we found quite a few Italian restaurants here in the Us which compared very well to restaurants even Italy
Is it possible that the Berlin stuff was more your speed because it was adjusted for German tastebuds?
Iāve been pretty disappointed with the Italian food in Germany but Iāve only had it a few times. Serious Italian restautants in major cities in the U.S. focusing on specific regions are making their own pasta from specific flours with excellent ingredients. After spending some time in Italy in October, in many cases I felt the quality there could be replicated in certain places in the US. I will say that Iāve only eaten in German and Austrian Italian restaurants a few times so I canāt claim to have any kind of real assessment, just anecdotal.
Oh, but weāre not doing a scientific study here. It is all but collected subjective anecdotes 
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Bingo. My personal experience with Italian restaurants in Berlin, but also other cities including my hometown, is that they import a lot of their ingredients from Italy. Itās close by, so stuff doesnāt travel as long as here, I suppose.
Berlin also has 3 very large Italian markets where both the ex-pats and restaurants shop.
My personal, limited experience with Italian food in NYC and Philly has been underwhelming. I did have a great meal at the now closed Erbaluce in Boston. This was over a decade ago & yet I still recall itā¦ which demonstrates the mealās singularity.
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So you prefer German Italian food even though it may or may not be ābetter.ā I get it.
How so? I mean, Iāve eaten in Italy in various regions outside of tourist areas presumably not catering to āGerman tastebudsā 
ā¦ and TBH I donāt even know what that would constitute ā itās not like Italian food is so far out there it would be a shock to our sensitive palates 
I guess what I am saying is that the Italian food I had in Germany is on par with Italian food I had in Italy, but I initially wanted to avoid comparing Italian food in Italy with Italian food in the US.
Well, now I have. Maybe that clarifies it for you?
Itās not German Italian. Itās Italian. Or, more specifically ā Tuscan, Ligurian, Puglian, etc. etc.
Italian Food (ETA: particularly regional styles) served in Germany appeals to your tastes more than Italian Food in America. I am trying to understand.
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I like Italian food. Like I get in Italy. Which is better at Italian restaurants Iāve been to in Italy and Germany than the Italian restaurants Iāve been to in the US.
In your opinion, yes. Since this is not a truly scientific review and is subjective. Not trying to pick a fight at all, but I find the notion of ābestā tends to be debatable.
I always feel that is the shortcoming of many Italian restaurants in Germany that they just rely way too much on imported stuff instead of making it in-house, e.g. pasta, charcuterie etc. Which makes also flavors in many Italian restaurants in Germany too similar as they getbit from the same source
I said better. And I would assume most people would agree that Italyās Italian food is better than Italian food elsewhere. Terroir, highly regional products & produce that donāt travel farā¦ it seems rather obvious why that would be the case.
But now I feel like I am all out of words to explain something that seemed pretty basic to me.
Ciao, ragazzi!
That has also not been my experience with the Italian restaurants I frequent. There are usually sections for dried & fresh pasta made in house on the menu 
Iām not huge on charcuterie cuz I can buy very good imported salumi at the aforementioned markets, and save those for a cheap Abendbrot at home.
No need to go out for that and pay double.
I thought that was what you were saying and it is as preposterous as I thought. Thanks for clarifying.
Youāre most welcome. I hope you get to visit the many regions of Italy some time so you can form your own opinion, which no doubt will not be preposterous at all, but instead well-informed & you well-sated.
Buon appetito, ragazzo!
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But Italian food doesnāt have to use Italian ingredients to be outstanding. You can get Italian food in Italian restaurants in the US with ingredients from the US which is on the same level as food in restaurants in Italy. (and same for any other cuisine). It is more important to capture the mindset of a cuisine than just using their ingredients. And ingredients in Italy arenāt automatically better than from other parts of the world
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Agree with this 100%. The are a couple of places in Portland Or that do this with the excellent produce and proteins available in the PNW. They can sometimes produce dishes at the same level as those Iāve had in Italy.
And certainly itās the same for many restaurants Iāve been to in bigger cities.
Iām sure you can. Iāve just not had it, save for very few exceptions, one notable I mentioned further upthread. Whereas the opposite has generally been true for me in Berlin. Cheaper, too
Fun fact: Iāve had plenty of mediocre food in Italy. Food ājust like in Italyā doesnāt mean much outside of a romantic notion of nonna toiling away using fresh tomatoes harvested directly from the soil of Mount Vesuvius.
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