Italian Phrase
Il cibo è buonissimo!
Meaning
Literally, ‘The food is very good.’ In everyday Italian it conveys that the speaker finds the food exceptionally tasty, often with a sense of delight or surprise.
When to use
Use this phrase when you want to compliment a meal at a restaurant, at a friend’s house, or after tasting a new dish. It works in both casual and semi‑formal settings, but the exclamation makes it sound enthusiastic.
✦Grammar Breakdown
Ilciboèbuonissimo!
Definite article (Il)
Il is the masculine singular definite article used before consonant-starting nouns like cibo.
Noun (cibo)
Cibo means ‘food’; it is a masculine singular noun, so it matches the article Il.
Verb essere (è)
È is the third‑person singular present of essere (to be). It links the subject with its description.
Absolute superlative (buonissimo)
Buonissimo is the absolute superlative of buono (good). It adds the suffix -issimo to express ‘very, extremely’ and agrees in gender and number with the noun.
Exclamation mark
The exclamation mark adds enthusiasm; it is not pronounced but signals a strong positive feeling.
🗨In Conversation
Il cibo è buonissimo!
The food is delicious!
Sono d'accordo, è davvero squisito.
I agree, it’s truly exquisite.
✕Common Mistakes
Il cibo è buono.
Using the plain adjective buono (good) sounds less enthusiastic; the superlative buonissimo is the idiomatic way to say ‘delicious.’
Il cibo è molto buono.
‘Molto buono’ is grammatically correct but sounds weaker than the native‑speaker favorite buonissimo.
Il cibi è buonissimo.
Cibi is the plural of cibo; the article Il is singular, so they must agree.
↔Alternatives
Il cibo è delizioso!
The food is delicious!
Il cibo è squisito!
The food is exquisite!
Che bontà!
What a treat!
Cultural Tip
Italians love to praise food with superlatives like buonissimo, delizioso, or squisito. While the absolute superlative (‑issimo) sounds natural in informal conversation, in very formal writing you might prefer delizioso. Also, avoid over‑using it in a single meal; Italians tend to reserve such strong praise for truly outstanding dishes.