Literal translation
To eat little lookings (bits of nothing, only looked at)
Meaning
to eat absolutely nothing
Explanation
Regardello comes from regarda, to look : the original image is « eating with the eyes », whether facing a beautifully plated dish or food one can see but not afford, long the lot of poor people. Eating visions amounts to eating nothing at all. Seen as a pretty phrase, it drifted into common use and lost its original sense, so many now hear it as « eating the air of the times ». There is also viéure de regardello, living on love and fresh water. It fits perfectly the minimalist plates of nouvelle cuisine, lovely to look at but too light to satisfy hunger.