Supermarket /halal produce

[makhruji]

Hi all..

My family and I will be in Italy in 2 weeks time and wondering where we can buy basic ingredients like eggs, milk (from the supermarket) and halal meats (we are Muslim) in Milan, Venice, Pisa, Florence & Rome? Also is there any recommended halal restaurants at the abovementioned cities?

[hrvvzoov]

For the city of Pisa, you may look at the Halal guide of the Islam Pisa website

https://sites.google.com/site/islampisa

[barberinibee]

Certainly Milan, Pisa and Florence have lots of Muslim residents and food shops so your best approach might be to strike up conversations with food shop owners about where to eat in restaurants. I think Venice might be your toughest spot, but maybe I'm wrong. (It is a tough spot for any kind of meat eaters, since local cuisine is so sea-oriented.)

[makhruji]

Oh great idea! I will do just that! I do not know exactly where I will be staying at yet so guess its seafood for the first few days then ... Until I get my bearings and ask around ... Thanks again!

[jen kalb]

there are several kebab shops/south asian establishments in Venice (mostly around the Strada Nuova, I think) as well as a couple of kosher places and many pizzerie. Micaela Scibilia even recommends a couple - will try to post the names later.

[makhruji]

It'll be so great if you could. It would be a bummer of we have to
Eat margherita pizza or seafood pizza throughout our stay ..

[jen kalb]

well, here are a few from Scibilia's book on good eating in Venice. She is not halal conscious however so take this for what its worth if you taste runs in this direction. You might also look at the vegetarian threads.
Z&Z Kebab 1465 San Polo, Calle de la Madoneta, kababs and sweets, including some imported from Jordan, recommended as the best kebab shop in Venice
Alla Zucca (no fish or seafood)
Mi e Ti Dorsoduro 2920 Campo Santa Margherita, light mediterranean and mideast style dishes, including felafel, kebabs, kibbe, stuffed peppers, eggplant and chickpea dip, etcserved by a kurdish-origin venetian host
Ganesh Ji, what it sounds like, Indian cooks, San Polo, rio Marin, inexpensive
Frary's bar, Fondamenta dei Frari, San Polo, eclectic middle east cooking, including Bedouin, turkish, kurdish lebanese and tunisian styles, inexpensive
Le Balthazar, Glatt Kosher, cannaregio, Campo del Gheto Nuovo, fixed price and childrens menus

[makhruji]

Oh wow! That's an extensive list!! Bless you! I'm going to list down everything because data charges is probably going to kill me thereafter! What about souvenirs? Anything I should look for specifically from each city? I know I should get the basics like Murano pendants, pasta, biscotti, olive oil, silk scarves... Anything else that's typically Italian that's not
Common?

[minchilli]

I found this list, which may be helpful:
http://www.zabihah.com/sp.php?l=rome&country=us

www.elizabethminchilliinrome.com

[vinoroma]

good list. As i thought, most are doner kebab type places, with a couple indian places thrown in, which might not be enough to sustain on and also will not give OP an accurate picture of the traditional foods. But maybe it is not his intention, so all is good. BUt one important remark: I know for a fact that Taverna Ripetta on the list is NOT halal. let alone the fact that halal requires an appropriate butchering of beef & lamb, they actually serve pork. No halal restaurant will ever let pork onto its premises.

[makhruji]

I read that ALL halal restaurants in Italy serves alcohol in their premises so at least we can expect it... Its just that I have 2 young children with me and as much as they love pastas and pizzas there´s a limit to how much they can take. So am thinking of cooking simple fried rice or noodles or sandwiches to last them until we can have proper filling meals...

[jen kalb]

the zabibah site seems pretty good - with a lot of detail - so you can figure what you are comfortable with.

[jen kalb]

Ive read the zabihah.com reviews for US restaurants and I think they give a pretty good picture of the restaurants, so that individuals can make their own decisions about whether the food is acceptable based on their own preferences and practices.

One restaurant which the OP might like in Milano is Latteria San Marco, which we lunched at a couple times last summer. We didnt have any meat - they had a range of very nice vegetable grain and cheese based dishes which were very enjoyable. A tiny place, no reservations at lunch time, no bathroom on premises (a guy takes you to an adjoining building!)

[makhruji]

Yeah I've read and it's pretty good and it gives you a rough expenditure average too. Right now I don't even know where I'm staying yet so it's hard to figure out the eateries that's near our hotel.

[makhruji]

Thanks so much! Love your blog by the way... i´m really starting to look forward to my trip and get excited to try the food (without the meats and wine of course!)

[vinoroma]

basic ingredients can be bought at any supermarket, small grocery shop, etc, you will find many of them. Halal meats are a bit more difficult, here in Rome there are some butchers, esp. around the Piazza Vittorio Emanuele area, where you can buy halal meat (but, can you cook it, will you be staying in an apartment?) but I am not aware of any halal restaurants (not saying it doesn't exist). Even if you do find some halal restaurants, I am afraid it won't be enough. You might want to stick with regular restaurants and just avoid meat dishes, which won't be difficult.

[makhruji]

Thanks Vinoroma! We already anticipate that we´ll have to have fish, seafood at the regular restaurants but am going to try to find some meat to just balance it out... apart from Rome, are you familiar with Milan? That will be our first stop so if there are kebab stalls in popular area it´ll be good to know.