RichardBloomfield

I have been planning our trip to Italy over many months and during that time I have noted many recommended restaurants. Unfortunately most of these restaurants are in the moderate to high price bracket.
As we are on a budget, we can only afford to eat at these restaurants on the odd night, so we were wondering if we can have suggestions for affordable eating places, say under 15 euro each, or am I asking the impossible.
Thank you
Richard.

judya

For lunch we stopped in deli-bars and had sub sandwiches toasted, great. Grabed an ice cream from a resturant window service for a snack. At night we walked and looked at menus posted outside of resturants. We never spent much and always drank house wine, never bottled water or soda (wine is less expensive)I don't think you can have abad meal in Italy.

Kavey

Even in Venice there are inexpensive options - there are a number of casual places where many of Venetians stop for lunch etc. We received some recommendations from the gondolieri working the stand just outside our hotel (not that we ever took a gondola ride) but didn't end up eating there because they were often full on the occasions we tried...

Reeder

In Venice go to Vino Vino not far from San Marco. I think it is a favorite of gonodoliers. You go in and point to what you want in the case (they will have 3 or 4 choices) then you sit down and they serve it to you. They offer a basket of bread, have reasonable house wines etc. If you order one of the pasta dishes (we had vegetable lasagna--nice portion) you could keep the tab low. The meat dishes are more expenxive. It is a busy bustling little place but is an experience at the same time. I think I read the food is from a pricey restaurant nearby. H

Linda0515

We were traveling with two teens, so we needed restaurants not only inexpensive but casual and also with menus appealing to picky American kids. We ate almost exclusively at pizzerias. A pizza margherita (just tomato sauce and cheese) was usually about 5-7 Euros, and those with more toppings were perhaps 1-2 Euros more. Every one we had was very good. Sometimes for dinner we just had the pasta course, which was never more than 10 Euros. Then we never ate dessert in a restaurant but instead went to a gelateria where a single scoop of gelato is usually 1 Euro. We ate outside whenever we could, and the scenery made our meals just as memorable as the food!

bardo

Not to worry, just duck into any bar. You'll be able to get a tasty meal - soup, sandwiches, and the like for well under 10 Euro (including the beer).

barbmike

One of the BEST pizzerias in Rome is Da Baffetto's near P. Navona on Via del Governo Vecchio,14 with their BEST pizza under 10 euros. Also, Mario's in the Trastevere area of Rome where a few weeks ago I had their 10 euro fixed menu lunch that included several choices AND wine, water and bread. It was suggested on this site and well worth the trip over the Tiber river. Their address is Via del Moro, 53. One of my best lunches was at Gusto's and their 10 euro lunch special that included two choices from their list and a liter of house wine that was SUPERB. They are on Via Della Frezza at Via Del Corso near P. Augusto Imperatore. Good Eating and Have a Great Trip !!! Mike

RichardBloomfield

Thank you all so much, just what I wanted to hear.
Richard.

Sally

Search on Fodor's for Orso 80 in Rome near Piazza Navona. Get the Antipasta for 11 euros per person which includes about ten delicious bowls of food- more than you can possibly eat. We ate there twice.

Eat at Convent Fraterna Domus, also close to Navona ,for 12 euros a meal.

Get wonderful carry out food at rotisserias, including meat and wonderful vegetables, for not much.

Buy food at super markets very inexpensively.
I second Vino, Vino!

papagena

In Rome we went into the smaller streets around Piazza Navona (not on the piazza itself) and looked for a restaurant with a lot of Italian people eating there.
We often ended up ordering by asking for what the people at the next table were eating and drinking.
We had several lovely meals for less than 10 euros per person in this manner.
Trastevere is another good area for cheap restaurants.

barbmike

I second Sally's suggestions as I stayed/ate at Fraterna Domus. You don't have to stay there to have lunch/dinner (same 12 euro price) as the food is excellent. I also ate three times at Orso 80 as that MIXED ANTIPASTO is enough for 2-3 people. GOOD LUCK!!! Mike

RichardBloomfield

Sally and Mike - We will definitely try Fraterna Domus.
Is it permissable to order the mixed antipasto, at the Orso 80, and share it between us.

Papagena thanks for that I will try looking for where the locals eat and see what we come up with.
Richard

Sally

You share the antipasti, but it is 11 euros apiece- It is a complete delicious meal- you won't want to order anything else except wine. It opens at 7:30pm.

You may need to make a reservation for Fraterna Domus.It is very popular with people who live nearby. The sisters are lovely. We stayed there for 12 days in December. Tell them Sally and Pat O'Neil say hello. I'm the one whom they looked after when I hurt my back the first night of my trip!

Ask if you can see the old church that the convent is built on to. It is 1000 years old. It is lovely to go to a service there.

It is especially interesting to eat Sunday (noon)dinner - You will see many local families eating there. Lunch time during the week is probably more fun than supper because many local businessmen eat there.

suze

I can only speak to Venice, two trips. For lunch I loved the pre-made sandwiches on display at the cafes. Roasted vegetables, or hard boiled egg & tomato on fabulous rolls were my favorites. Pizza at an outdoor cafe right on a canal in the evening. Snacks and picnics from the local grocery store (was not easy to spot, I followed an old woman with an empty rolling basket). All within your budget.

MFNYC

I'm also a big Mario's fan. I was taken there by locals 20 years ago and loved the food. Back in '01 when I visited with my family, I was able to find it and we had a great meal there again which cost all of $30 for the 4 of us! I have also been told there is another Mario's (I don't knw if they are related), near the forum that is very good.

Princess

This may not appeal to you and I thought it wouldn't to my husband and I, but when we got lost in Venice (not a bad thing to do)looking for a place to eat, getting hungrier by the minute,we happened across a Burger King/Italian Pizza Combination Restaurant. We walked in and on the Italian Pizza side, you paid 6E for a nice size piece of pizza, a salad, a coke and a delicious Tirimasu. We really enjoyed it and for the price, it was a great deal. I don't know where exactly it was at, but we were surprised to see it!

coffeeaddict

In Rome, try Da Augusto, in Trastevere. A hole-in-the-wall place catering mostly to locals. I think the most expensive item on the menu is 10 euros--good home cooking (although as I remember, the house wine was bad).

For a great breakfast, be sure to go to Al Forno in the Campo di Fiori--it's a standing room only bakery that serves the most delectable pizza bianca (pizza crust drizzled with olive oil and a little salt). You tell the countertop how much you want. A huge slice is about 1.5 euro.

RichardBloomfield

Suze, Princess,coffeeaddict and MFNYC, thank you so much for all your suggestions, I have taken note of all of them.

MFNYC, do you possiby have the address of Mario's that you so kindly recommended.
Thanks
Richard.

mclaurie

Richard, in Venice, the pizzeria at the foot of the Accademia bridge on the Dorsoduro side is very decent but gets crowded because of it's location. Go at an off time. We had a good meal just down from the Jewish museum in Cannaregio-sorry I don't remember the name. People like San Travaso, also in Dorsoduro, & also gets very busy.

Read, or have your wife read "A Thousand Days in Venice" by Maria de Blasi. She's a American chef/ food writer/ restauranteur who meets & amrries a Venetian. As she describes her time there she mentions many eating places the locals frequent (Do Mori is one). I was wishing I had read this book BEFORE going. Have a great trip!

Mamma_Love

I'm sorry, I have to strongly urge you against Reeder and Sally's recommendation to try Vino Vino.

I was there in late March and the food was not good. We stopped in for lunch, yes it's fairly inexpensive, but not worth seeking out.

Also the bathroom was disgusting! Paper, water (I hope), and even...how to put this...excrement on the floor.

I was so sorry that I had sought this place out.