Most of the rest are fine, depending on how they are sauced. Around Casa Silenus, we eat penne more than anything else. Fusilli and spaghetti fight it out for second/third.
Capellini and papardelle are probably my favorites.
Rotini and other dense noodles of that ilk are at the bottom - I’m okay with al dente in a delicate or thin pasta, but too chewy in a thick pasta kills it for me.
Bucatini (dry) and paparadelle (fresh) are my favorite shapes. At the bottom of the list is wagon wheels. What the hell is the point of that?
What’s not to like about orzo? It’s like rice in pasta form, and that’s basically how I use it–wherever rice would be an appropriate addition, whether in a soup or as a side to a stewy dish.
I’m a big fan of the long noodles. Spaghetti, linguini, fettuccine, pappardelle, angel hair, tagliatelle, vermicelli, I think that’s everybody.
My spouse, however, does not like long noodles at all. (I have always suspected it is a “Egads, how uncouth!” thing with all the spinning of the fork and slurping. Nothing to do with the flavor, sauce-ability, mouth feel, etc.)
Gotta disagree. I like to make chicken, pounded flat and breaded with Panko and Parmesan, served on a buttery, cheesy bowl of orzo.
Least favorite is rotini, followed by orecchiette (little ears). There is no easy way to eat the former, and the latter is more like globs of starch. I like most everything else.
Different pastas have different applications - they’re all good for something! Hell, even those penis-shaped novelty pastas are good for bachelorette parties.
In other words, this question is really asking "what are your favorite types of pasta dishes, IMHO.
I like vermicelli with spaghetti sauce, orzo or elbows for soup, and rotini for “beefaroni,” (pasta, hamburger meat & canned tomatoes with lots of black pepper).
I don’t like any of the flat noodles (except lasagna noodles in lasagna). They remind me of flatworms and creep me out.
I like thin, fine, long noodles, like thin spaghetti and capellini best.
I’m not a fan of stubby pastas like fusilli and rotini; they just don’t have that slippery mouthfeel like the long stuff.
But I do dislike bucatini, if that’s the stuff that is basically a long thin tubular noodle. When you try to slurp it up, all you do is suck air through the hole in the middle.