Fettucini

The Only Original Alfredo Sauce with Butter and Parmesano-Reggiano Cheese. The dish became widespread and eventually spread to the United States, where it remains fettucini. The recipe has evolved, and its commercialized version—with heavy cream and other ingredients—is now ubiquitous.

Modern fettuccine Alfredo was invented by Alfredo di Lelio in Rome. According to family accounts, in 1892 Alfredo di Lelio began to work in a restaurant that was located in piazza Rosa and run by his mother Angelina. The fame of Alfredo’s fettuccine spread, first in Rome and then to other countries. Di Lelio was made a Cavaliere dell’Ordine della Corona d’Italia. In 1943, during the war, di Lelio sold the restaurant to two of his waiters.

The dish was so well known that di Lelio was invited to demonstrate it both in Italy and abroad. Recipes attributed to di Lelio only include three ingredients: fettuccine, young Parmesan cheese and butter. Fettuccine Alfredo, minus the spectacle, has now become ubiquitous in Italian-style restaurants outside Italy, although in Italy this dish is usually called simply “fettuccine al burro”. This act of mixing the butter and cheese through the noodles becomes quite a ceremony when performed by Alfredo in his tiny restaurant in Rome. As busy as Alfredo is with other duties, he manages to be at each table when the waiter arrives with the platter of fettuccine to be mixed by him.