Four restuarants in Royal Oak will be closing

[Bham1982]

I want to know why Italian food qualifies as Fine Dining. Family fare, sure, but fine dining?

A countless variation of pasta and sauce just never seemed to me as worthy of such a designation as Fine Dining.

If Fine Dining is the peak, the top, the supreme, and if pasta and sauce qualifies, what goes above it?

Italian food is far more than "pasta and sauce". It's one of the most diverse cuisines on the planet. The cuisine is pretty radically different depending on location.

And the highest rated restaurant on the planet, Osteria Francescana, is Italian. Fine dining can be Italian, just as for any other cuisine.

https://www.theworlds50best.com/list/1-50-winners

Most of the "Italian" in the U.S. is not really Italian food. If you go to Italy, you won't find spaghetti and meatballs, garlic bread, veal parmesan, cheesecake, etc. You will find highly localized specialties, most of which aren't well known here.

If you're in, say, Venice, and see a restaurant advertising pizza or pasta, it's guaranteed to be a tourist joint. They don't eat that stuff. Venetians eat fried seafood, risotto, bean soup, etc.