The Blue Guides Italy Food App provides a dictionary and miscellany of all the Italian food and drink words you are likely to find on a menu or in a market. Suitable for browsing or on-site use, it is a self-contained app which once downloaded does not need Internet access and thus incurs no expensive roaming charges or download delays. With full searchability and indexing you can find what you want instantly. A sound file for every single entry gives immediate pronunciation guidance.

Now in a free (limited to only around 500 words) and a premium (2,500+ words) version, you can try the functionality and ease-of-use of the free app then, if you choose, upgrade to the full version with a simple in-app purchase.

The app is based on the content of the Blue Guide Italy Food Companion, described as a “Phrasebook & Miscellany”, which, as well as the useful dictionary function, gives background, facts and guidance, for example on such things as the seasonality of particular foods, historical origins, classical references or regional specialities. All this content is available in the app. The book is available at good bookshops for £6.99 / $10.95.

Blue Guides has been a leading publisher of cultural, English-language travel guides since the series’ launch in 1918. Described as “guidebooks in the grand tradition of thoroughness and objectivity” (Georgia Review), the guides maintain to this day their high standards of research and scholarship. With a strong range of Italy titles, this handy companion on Italian food is an ideal complement to a good guide book.