Here is an editted list of some dining possibilities from Reidsitaly.com (http://www.reidsitaly.com/planning/dining/restaurant_types.html)
- Aperitivi/stuzzichini: In brief, in the late evening (usually around 7pm) many bars around town will lay out sumptuous spreads of free finger foods—canapés, cheeses and meats, fried things on sticks, sometimes pastries.
- Bar: An Italian bar, although it does indeed serve liquor, is more what we'd call a cafe. It's where workers pop in for their morning espresso and cornetto (croissant) or brioche (sweet roll) on the way to work, return for a cappuccino at the 10am break, and stop on their way home for a Campari-soda at the end of the work day
- Caffé: Pretty much just another name for a bar, though there may be more of an emphasis on the coffee, and on outdoor tables.
- Tavola calda: A very informal (and sometimes self-serve) eatery where you usually choose from a pre-prepared selection of hot dishes. Great for a quick, light meal.
- —Pizzeria: A casual restaurant where you go to eat pizza. Again, pretty obvious, but here are a few Italian quirks. Traditional pizzerie are open only in the evenings, and they don't serve much beyond pizza.
- Gelateria: An Italian ice cream shop—though calling Italy's thick, creamy, flavorful frozen treat something as banal as "ice cream" is deeply insulting to gelato.
- Osteria or hosteria: Usually an even simpler, down-home local's eatery than a trattoria—though sometimes fancy restaurants use the word to try and evoke a simple, trendy charm.
- Ristorante: Eateries which call themselves "ristorante" usually have pretensions to haute cuisine status—or at least high prices. By far not a hard and fast rule
This brings us to my favorite- The Trattoria
Often a family affair the Trattoria offers a wide variety of choices done with a simple approach. No fancy bites or sculptural cuisine here. This is often just good food by the owner/chef.
This trip introduced us to a memorable trattoria in S_ not far from our first inn.
The owner/chef had run it for 40 years spoke no English and was a delightful host. We sat in the sun of the modest trattoria, enjoying the fence of wine bottles past and sampled whatever he brought out
Watkins Glen 
