Whether you are eating out at a local trattoria in Italy, where the staff consists of a Mamma, Papa, and perhaps a cugino who is your head waiter, or whether you are treating yourself to a five star restaurant where minced porcini mushrooms or truffles are delicately infused into the noodles, no matter what—the pasta must be outstanding. Gli antipasti may be just average, and even the service may be as slow as a lumaca, but that pasta had better be good (or else). After all, it is the Primo Piatto which will set the stage, and be the tell-tale sign if the rest of the meal will be just passable or if it will make your palate sing "O Sole Mio."

Pasta is that important; it is the centerpiece of any Italian meal. Although it often plays second fiddle to its accompanying sauce, just try combining that same sauce with cheap overcooked noodles, and you will see that pasta is the dish's true star. Yes, pasta matters and it matters a lot.

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Fonte: The Italian American Journal