Best pizza in Rome
Jul 2nd, 2017, 02:15 PM
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Just like anywhere, people argue about where to find the "best" pizza. In Rome, there are 3 kinds of pizza:
One kind of pizza is round, and with a very thin crust, and it is served in pizzerie in the evenings. You sit down to eat it with a knife and fork, and the toppings are usually very simple. It is very rare for anyone in Italy to eat meat on top of pizza. One round pizza is meant to serve one person, not to be shared.
Another kind of Roman pizza is sold in individual square slices from bakeries all day long, but many people eat it as a snack in the late afternoon. It is called pizza al taglio, and since it has a thicker soft crust, you can eat it with your hands. It is usually served warm or room temperature, rather than piping hot. It has become very trendy in Rome for pizzza al taglio to have lots of fancy toppings instead of just a tomato sauce and a bit of melted cheese.
Last kind of pizza is pizza bianca, which is simply a baked flat bread, but it is surprisingly delicious. It is also sold in bakeries, and people will often line up to get a fresh hot slice. It is very popular to eat it as a snack midmorning, and sometimes it is split sideways into two thinner pieces and used like a sandwich bread.
Depending on who is making the pizza, each will have its own character. Some people will prefer the pizza from one pizzamaker more than another. Right now, in Rome, there is a pizzamaker named Bonci who has become a huge favorite with many people & American tourists who follow food blogs. But I think his pizza is too much like gourmet California pizza, and prefer the old styles better. So there really is no meaning to someone telling you "this is they best." 99% of the time they are just trying to show off.
One kind of pizza is round, and with a very thin crust, and it is served in pizzerie in the evenings. You sit down to eat it with a knife and fork, and the toppings are usually very simple. It is very rare for anyone in Italy to eat meat on top of pizza. One round pizza is meant to serve one person, not to be shared.
Another kind of Roman pizza is sold in individual square slices from bakeries all day long, but many people eat it as a snack in the late afternoon. It is called pizza al taglio, and since it has a thicker soft crust, you can eat it with your hands. It is usually served warm or room temperature, rather than piping hot. It has become very trendy in Rome for pizzza al taglio to have lots of fancy toppings instead of just a tomato sauce and a bit of melted cheese.
Last kind of pizza is pizza bianca, which is simply a baked flat bread, but it is surprisingly delicious. It is also sold in bakeries, and people will often line up to get a fresh hot slice. It is very popular to eat it as a snack midmorning, and sometimes it is split sideways into two thinner pieces and used like a sandwich bread.
Depending on who is making the pizza, each will have its own character. Some people will prefer the pizza from one pizzamaker more than another. Right now, in Rome, there is a pizzamaker named Bonci who has become a huge favorite with many people & American tourists who follow food blogs. But I think his pizza is too much like gourmet California pizza, and prefer the old styles better. So there really is no meaning to someone telling you "this is they best." 99% of the time they are just trying to show off.
Jul 2nd, 2017, 03:33 PM
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As with any food in any city, you could find the best of something and the worst of something. I've had both in Rome. My favorite would be Ristorante Pizzeria Pasquino, just off of Piazza Navona. The place serves the round pizzas that massimop mentioned above; the crust was thin and crispy and the ingredients fresh and delicious. We also enjoyed a selection of appetizers and Roman-style street foods; all were excellent.
Jul 3rd, 2017, 02:45 AM
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I have a few comments about pizza in general as well as massimop's posting.
1. Everyone has their prefrences and should be respected. Do not expect, in Rome, a typical Nepolitan pizza or a Chicago deep pie pizza.
2. Many pizzerie, to keep up with demand, do not cook the pizza long enough so often the base is too soft. To avoid this ask for the pizza to be "ben cotta".
3. Pizza are available also at lunch time - not just in the evenings as stated by massimop.
4. "It is very rare for anyone in Italy to eat meat on top of pizza." - if massimop means mince, chicken or whatever, I agree. But many pizza in Italy include prosciutto cotto, prosciutto crudo (generally added after cooking), salame (piccante), speck etc.
5. Pizza a taglio is eaten all day long. "It is usually served warm or room temperature, rather than piping hot." - is massimop Italian? If it warm or room temperature it is because it has been on the counter for some time. Many will wait for the pizza coming straight out of the oven - i.e. hot! Alternatively a proper outlet will pop your slice back in the oven to heat it up.
1. Everyone has their prefrences and should be respected. Do not expect, in Rome, a typical Nepolitan pizza or a Chicago deep pie pizza.
2. Many pizzerie, to keep up with demand, do not cook the pizza long enough so often the base is too soft. To avoid this ask for the pizza to be "ben cotta".
3. Pizza are available also at lunch time - not just in the evenings as stated by massimop.
4. "It is very rare for anyone in Italy to eat meat on top of pizza." - if massimop means mince, chicken or whatever, I agree. But many pizza in Italy include prosciutto cotto, prosciutto crudo (generally added after cooking), salame (piccante), speck etc.
5. Pizza a taglio is eaten all day long. "It is usually served warm or room temperature, rather than piping hot." - is massimop Italian? If it warm or room temperature it is because it has been on the counter for some time. Many will wait for the pizza coming straight out of the oven - i.e. hot! Alternatively a proper outlet will pop your slice back in the oven to heat it up.
Jul 3rd, 2017, 04:10 AM
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Yes and no about whether pizzerie serving round hot pizza open for lunch. Many of the most-often recommended places do not, and it is not customary to eat pizza for lunch, although certainly many Romans do.
My comment about it being rare to find meat atop pizza was limited to hot round pizza. Yes it is not uncommon to be find proscuitto in particular added to a a cooked pizza (most often bianca) but just like you wanted to flag people should not expect non-Roman types of pizza in Rome, the kind of multiple-cooked meat-topped kitchen sink pizza sold in America is not the norm for round pizza in Rome.
I have a horror of reheated pizza, and much pizza al taglio in Rome is delicious when eaten at room temperature. Many Romans agree. Many Americans and Brits disagree. If you want it reheated, ask (but look first to see it's not being microwaved).
My comment about it being rare to find meat atop pizza was limited to hot round pizza. Yes it is not uncommon to be find proscuitto in particular added to a a cooked pizza (most often bianca) but just like you wanted to flag people should not expect non-Roman types of pizza in Rome, the kind of multiple-cooked meat-topped kitchen sink pizza sold in America is not the norm for round pizza in Rome.
I have a horror of reheated pizza, and much pizza al taglio in Rome is delicious when eaten at room temperature. Many Romans agree. Many Americans and Brits disagree. If you want it reheated, ask (but look first to see it's not being microwaved).
Jul 3rd, 2017, 04:20 AM
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Adding that, as stated above, it is a common sight to see Romans lining up for pizza bianca. Less so for piazza al taglio, and you will see many Romans purchase room temperature pizza from a shop and walk away eating it, refusing an offer to reheat it. I have never had a piazza al taglio shop automatically reheat a slice I purchased. They always ask first, since many won't want it, and certainly it would be a poor idea to stick into the oven many of the types of pizza al taglio that someone like Bonci makes. The toppings are not meant to be cooked.
Jul 3rd, 2017, 04:41 AM
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Ignoring the title, this is actually a very informative article about pizza in Rome, making many of the same points
http://www.romewise.com/pizza-in-rome.html
http://www.romewise.com/pizza-in-rome.html
Jul 3rd, 2017, 06:50 AM
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I was in Rome two weeks ago and it was the end of our two-week visit. All of us were ready for a simple dinner: cold meat and cheese platter appetizer for three to share and a large plain pizza.
La Segrestia is a restaurant we are familiar with, and it is well-located near the Pantheon. The pizza crust was thin and "slightly" crispy...not wet at all, and the sauce and cheese topping was wonderful. There wasn't a crumb left on anyone's plate.
La Segrestia is a restaurant we are familiar with, and it is well-located near the Pantheon. The pizza crust was thin and "slightly" crispy...not wet at all, and the sauce and cheese topping was wonderful. There wasn't a crumb left on anyone's plate.
Jul 5th, 2017, 12:30 PM
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<<Do not expect, in Rome, a typical Ne[a]politan pizza or a Chicago deep pie pizza."
That's really true but neither the Neapolitan nor Sicilian styles Americans know about are particularly common in Italy at all. We had the "roman" pizza described above in Capri which is thisclose to Naples.
If you expect to find Chicago deep-dish "pizza" in Italy, you'd probably have to find an American chain restaurant in which to buy it. Italians prefer good food.
That's really true but neither the Neapolitan nor Sicilian styles Americans know about are particularly common in Italy at all. We had the "roman" pizza described above in Capri which is thisclose to Naples.
If you expect to find Chicago deep-dish "pizza" in Italy, you'd probably have to find an American chain restaurant in which to buy it. Italians prefer good food.
Jul 7th, 2017, 01:05 PM
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