Robert De Niro's Favorite Italian Dish Isn't Even Served At His Restaurants

Acclaimed actor and Italian-American Robert de Niro has always been a major foodie. He's co-founded multiple restaurants, most famously the global Japanese restaurant brand Nobu, along with chef Nobuyuki "Nobu" Matsuhisa. Yet in a twist that surprises many fans, De Niro's favorite Italian dish isn't served at any of the restaurants he owns. In an interview with journalist Chris Van Vliet shared on TikTok, De Niro revealed that his favorite Italian dish is ziti, the tubular pasta often baked with tomato sauce and cheese. It's a classic staple of Italian-American home cooking and is especially well-known in dishes like the classic baked ziti recipe, where the pasta is layered with marinara, ricotta, mozzarella, and sometimes sausage.

The choice certainly fits De Niro's reputation for appreciating rustic, comforting food. But here's the irony: Ziti doesn't appear anywhere on the menus of the restaurants he owns. Considering De Niro has invested in 20+ restaurants, the absence is notable, but not surprising. The reason for that absence is most likely tied to the types of restaurants the actor helped build. 

De Niro's best-known venture is Nobu, the luxury restaurant chain specializing in Japanese-Peruvian fusion cuisine. Thanks to De Niro's wooing of Chef Matsuhisa, Nobu's first location opened in New York in 1994 — and there were certainly no Italian dishes on the menu, let alone ziti. This was one celebrity restaurant venture that actually reflected the chef's vision, rather than the owner's personal pasta cravings.

Even though Robert De Niro has invested in several restaurants over the years, only a small number are actually Italian restaurants. Locanda Verde, in Tribeca, New York, is the primary Italian outlet he's known to be involved with. Opened in 2009, the restaurant focuses on modern Italian cuisine, emphasizing seasonal ingredients and a rustic bistro atmosphere. Though you won't see any ziti, the menu makes a nod to another famous Italian-American on-screen, Tony Soprano, with "Gabagool & Grana" being one of the antipasti dishes offered.

Nobu's entire brand identity, on the other hand, revolves around a specific culinary style: Japanese-Peruvian fusion dining. Adding a humble Italian pasta dish wouldn't exactly fit the concept. Even in his high-end Italian restaurants, De Niro's restaurants aim for upscale or globally inspired cuisine. Ziti, while a dearly beloved dish, is traditionally a homestyle comfort food, the kind of dish more likely to be made by your nonna, appearing at family gatherings or neighborhood Italian restaurants.

Nobu does serve one of De Niro's famously favorite dishes, which, as he revealed to The Sunday Times, is black cod with miso, a signature entree marinated in miso, mirin, and sake before being broiled. That dish will currently set you back $49 at the Nobu in downtown New York City. There's no doubt he probably pairs it with his favorite cocktail, a sake martini from Nobu, as confirmed on "The Late Show With Stephen Colbert," as well. But for most people (even global celebrities), the foods that mean the most aren't the ones served in luxury restaurants.