PITTSBURGH — Mario Batali has a self-definition for “Molto Mario”: Intensely curious, never resting and always looking for authenticity.

“Molto Mario” translates to very Mario in Italian and was the title of his late show on Food Network, but the words have stuck to describe him. Batali said his passion and excitement often overcome what a lot of people would consider sacred. “Food is not sacred. It is of the people and is made everyday by everybody who lives,” he added. When he gets excited about recipes, it’s because they are old — not new and definitely not something that is made “on the whim by some punk.”

Before he met with his fans earlier this month, Batali spoke candidly about his 10th cookbook and other topics.

Q: What inspired you to write the “Big American Cookbook”?

A: When I was traveling around the country in the last 15 years, I discovered all these beautiful and traditional dishes — not necessarily fancy or expensive, not necessarily hard to shop for, but ones that spoke to me of the very specific place where they were born. I divided the country into eight regions, and there’s a lot of crossover — there’s chili, seafood chowder, barbecue and casserole-y kind of things in a lot of places. So we broke it down to what makes a lot of sense.

Q: Is there a region that surprised you?

A: In terms of deliciousness, it’s the Southwest. I just like the chilies, the cultures of Latin America, Texas, Nebraska and kind of the West all coming together in one spot.

Q: And which region should get more recognition but doesn’t?

A: The Midwest. When you have a walleye sandwich near Lake Michigan, it’s something remarkable. If you go to West Side Market in Cleveland and eat the mainstays of the Eastern European deli culture, it kind of knocks you out.

Q: When you are on book tours like this one, what do you do when it comes to chow time?

A: Here? I am going to get one of those panini or sushi downstairs. I don’t go for fast-food chains ever. I don’t know where they get their stuff. I’m pretty sure they are mechanized and I like hand-made. At this point in America, there is always a good taco in town and always a place that has a good carved sandwich.

Q: You are all over the map, and have restaurants in New York, Las Vegas, Boston, and even Singapore.

A: The only reason we open new restaurants is when one of our sous chefs is so good and wants to work for somebody else or wants to open their own restaurant. I say, “Great. You want to go back to your own hometown?” That’s why we are in Los Angeles, Vegas, Singapore, Westport (Conn.), Port Chester ( N.Y.), Boston. We don’t look at a map and say, “this place looks like it is fertile ground for investment,” because we are not about that kind of a growth.

Q: Do you ever wait in line at restaurants?

A: I don’t really like waiting in line. There’s a place in New York City called Tim Ho Wan, a dim sum place from Hong Kong. People wait like 2 hours. I say get something else to do. I would go to the next best place with no lines.

Q: What is a signature Mario Batali dish?

A: Anything from antipasto to something as elaborate as beef cheek ravioli with squab liver and black truffles to something as simple as linguine with clams, hot chilies and a little bit of garlic. I’m pretty seasonal. This week, I will probably have asparagus with duck egg. I will just blast the asparagus and let it stay at room temperature. Then on a sunny side-up egg, I will add a little salt and some Parmigiano-Reggiano. That, for me, is a perfect dinner along with a glass of prosecco or Champagne.

Q: Speaking of critics, Pete Wells of The New York Times came down hard on Babbo.

A: Yes, he did. When I was a kid I would have said (expletive) you. But at this point in my life, I ask, “What can I learn from this?”

Q: Are you worried how reviews will affect your business?

A: I would just say Guy Fieri’s restaurant that got one of the most hilarious and nasty reviews of all time (in The New York Times by Pete Wells) made $17 million last year in New York City. So as great and as fun as it was to read, and I love Guy, it didn’t affect his business. Because The New York Times is The New York Times; it is not the national record.

Q: If someone has a bad experience at one of your restaurants, what do you say to the person?

A: Talk to the manager. Say what the problem is, and we will fix it. Our intention is not to create a bad experience but a good one. We are hospitality professionals. This is all we think about, except for rock ‘n’ roll. So if you give us a chance to fix it there, you might walk away with a good experience instead of feeling angry or bitter. Don’t just storm out in a huff because your martini didn’t have a certain number of olives in it. Tell us, we’ll add the olives.