Rome: Special Eating & Drinking Treats
 

What are some of your favorite food and drink items when you go to Rome?

What is that area of Italy famous for? Where do I go for "to die for" deserts and savor a cold beverage or two after a long day on the pavements.

I'm going in May so what is in season then? Names and locations would be appreciated.

One of my favorite things to do in Rome is to sit at a cafe and sip on a Martini Bianco, which is a sweet white vermouth. Every time I taste this drink I am back in Rome!

Prosecco is good, cheap and easy to order.

And I never pass on a primi of pasta (often ravioli) with a butter and sage sauce.

Here are some Roman specialties I heard about:

bucatini all'amatriciana (tomato, onion, bacon and a dash of cognac)

alIa carbonara (with a creamy egg and cheese sauce)

gnocchi alla "Romana”

saltimbocca (a fillet of veal rolled in ham and flavoured with sage, cooked in butter and served with a Marsala sauce)

abbacchio al forno (roast lamb)

I was there in May and Thursday nights were "gnocchi" nights at many restaurants.

I always like the carbonara and the bucatini you mention.

Artichokes are a nice Roman speciality. I like the pizza in Rome, too. Nice thin crust.

I don't know much about the Lazio wines, but I liked a lot of the cheap house white wine I drank in Rome.

Had an interesting beverage in the Campo di Fiori one night: absinthe. The real stuff, a licorice-like (like Pernod) drink that they add sugar to and then flambe. Interesting effect (slightly hallucinogenic, or so it seemed...)

If you are a coffee drinker, Tazza d'Oro, close to the Pantheon, has wonderful espresso and cappucino. It has a reputation for being the best coffee bar in Rome.

Make sure you have some insalata caprese for lunch or as a starter for dinner. The mozzarella di buffala is the slightly salty version of mozzarella and it is fantastic with olive oil and tomatoes. Of course, the perennial gelato too....cafe, pistacchio, anguria are some nice summer favorites (to name a few). Also, limoncello after a full meal in the restaurant is always a pleasing end to a delightful dinner experience.

Why has no-one mentioned the roman specialty par excellence: Carciofi (artichokes) prepared with fried zucchini blossoms, in the Jewish style, in the ghetto...

great tips!

Tegdale and I can eat together anytime!

I dream about those Roman artichokes!

Coffee - definitely head to Tazza D'Oro steps from the Pantheon and make sure to bring home some of their coffee (but overall, you can't go wrong in Rome for coffee - every morning as you are walking the streets you will hear the clinking of cups and glasses as the cafes begin their business day and the smell of espresso is everywhere) - pick up a cornetto di marmellata (croissant filled with jam) when you stop into any of the cafes - they are fabulous with a tall caffe latte

Antipasti - a lot of Roman restaurants do it well, particularly if they allow you to go and select the dishes you want for yourselves

Carciofi - whether fried in the Jewish-style or served marinated

Gelato - head to Millennium outside the Cipro metro stop and near Museo Vaticano for uno cono di nociotella (hazelnut), pistacio, e bacio (and plenty of panna (whipcream))

Pizza - La Boccaccia in Trastevere (right off the Via della Lungara) - absolutely best pizza in Rome (they use very seasonal ingredients and get fresh deliveries from Campo dei Fiori every morning of whatever the market vendors are selling

I guess I could go on and on...

Almost forgot to mention one of my other favorite places - Vinando - a terriffic wine bar/restaurant with about twenty seats.
Get the lasagna - it is made with bechamel and is amazing.
Don't know what his schedule is, but avoid any nights that the owner's son is manning the piano (his half Italian/English renditions of Frank Sinatra hits can actually ruin a meal at this otherwise terriffic restaurant)

Piazza Margana, 23

Cafe St. Eustachio, also very close to the Pantheon, would be my number one choice for an afternoon espresso break. Better yet than Tazza d'Oro, IMO.

Anna

Cafe St. Eustachio is worth a visit if not for their coffee, then the eccentricities of the staff that works there. I had two unpleasant dealings with employees there who treated an American patron (and one who had lived in Rome for long enough) with outright rudeness. Ex. left us standing at the bar for fifteen minutes as we patiently attempted to order (at one point even blatantly ignoring us by turning his back to us.) We left the place dissatisfied with both the coffee and the employees, but laughing nonetheless at the sheer oddity of the place.

ttt

Any rants or raves about this place?

Dar Filettaro a Santa Barbara: Inexpensive. Largo dei Librari, 88, Rome Italy Neighborhood: Campo de' Fiori, Phone: 06 864 018, Seafood, No Credit Cards, Mon - Sat 5:30 - 11pm. Just off the Campo de' Fiori in a charming circular piazza of Largo dei Librari, nightly fish-fry.

Funny thing: we were in Rome for the first time in October, wanting to have the famous carciofi. Never got around to it, came home, went to a party, and the hostess greeted us at the door with a plate of . ....... carciofi. At last!
Also Tazza d'Oro has a wonderful scrumptious thing: 2 scoops of fabulous coffee granita topped with a mountain of whipped cream. What is it called?

If I recall correctly, "granita di caffe alla panna."

Santa Barbara is an old-time basic place specializing in fried, cured cod..baccala. Rome is known also for the meat from the 'quinto cuarto" (the fifth quarter) which is what we in the US might call offal. The area in which to try this is Testaccio, where there are several famous places with offal dishes as well as dishes with oxtail, which is one of Rome's most famous specialties.This is the old butcher's area of the city.

linguine [or whichever pasta they have at the restaurant you're at] cacio e pepe.
It's just pecorino cheese and black pepper, maybe a little butter, moistened with the pasta water, but mamma mia! I've tried making it at home but it's just NOT as good. It's a Roman specialty.

Favorite salad:

Tomato, mozzeralla and basil with olive oil, vinegar, salt and pepper.

I LOVE basil and grow it in my garden. Unfortunately it dies every fall so I have to buy a new plant in the spring. It's very sensitive to wind and cold.

I don't know if this is especially Roman but at the end of a meal we were offered and tried limoncella, a lemon-based after-dinner drink that went down very well!

Have a tartuffo, a delicious ice cream concoction, at Tre Scalini on the Piazza Navonna. I hope it's still there!

Tre Scalini is most definitely still there, and I think they're getting about 5 euros for the tartuffo nowadays.

Appreciate all the additional inputs.

Just thought I should mention that carciofi won't be in season in may so if on offer may not be very good. But you'll get good melons, strawberries and tomatoes . Oh and fiori di zucca will be in season.

ttt

You can drink very good wines of "Castelli" (near Rome). I suggest you the wines of Casale del Giglio, Mater Matuta is really a marvellous red one, and the whites Frascati from Castel De Paolis, very very good,
ciao

There is one thing I want to remind you of if you travel with children or want interesting souvenirs.

It's called "kinder-egg" and looks like a wrapped egg. It's a chocolate egg with a small toy's parts inside.

My 23-year old son and his girlfriend had so much fun few days ago visiting us, when I gave them those eggs! One toy was a cowboy - press a button, and he jumps out of a bar. Another an ox and a carriage with movable parts.

"Where do I go for "to die for" deserts"

If I was a wise guy, I'd say the Gobi, but since I am not, here is my favorite dessert from our Fall trip to Rome.

Try the Il Saraceno dessert at Enoteca Trastevere, my favorite dessert of our Fall trip. It is a chocolate, cinammon, red pepper concoction that is so good that I had it all three nights. The chocolate kind of sticks to your nose when you're licking the plate, but other than that it was tremendous.
((H))

kateny - next time you visit Rome check out the restaurant directly across the street from Vinando. I think it was called Dei Tri Amici. We had a bottle of wine 2 nights in the bar part of Vinando which we loved, and then crossed the street to the restaurant.

Full of Italians, candlelight, and great food and prices. Reservations are essential though!

ttt

Found the name of the restaurant across from Vindanos - perfect!

La Taverna degli Amici

Tel: +39 06 6992 0637
Address: Piazza Margana, 36

Here is something to whet your appetite from a review I found. Website address at the bottom.

"In an unknown square, just off the hectic Piazza Venezia, Ristorante 'La Taverna degli Amici' is a hidden jewel. Its taper candles are lit as diners are seated at farmhouse tables. Copper pots and antique ceramics decorate the warm mustard walls. Old men with thick Roman accents dressed as waiters make certain you eat well and have a very good evening.

On a pottery dish lined with butchers' paper stained with their grease, the Fiore di Zucca are served straight from the fryer -- as they should be. Using my fork to cut through the golden batter and the delicate flower below, an explosion of creamy ricotta and sweet basil arrest me. Fresh-picked flowers of the pumpkin or zucchini plant are stuffed with cheese, battered, and lightly fried. This is a simple dish in which perfect balance is paramount. A single bite confirms success..."

http://www.thebonvivant.com/blog/arc...1_archive.html

Just got back from Rome. Every year, I must visit the following places.
Restaurant, Re Degli Amici, near Spanish Steps. Great Anti-Pasto, and excellent food.
Ambasciata D'Abruzzo, don't order fixed price menu. Just order off the menu, you'll love it. Most tourists order from fixed price menu. Its good, but not really as good.
Also, we like Alfredo's near Pantheon, for fettuccini Alfredo, we do this for lunch.
Dessert, Tre Scalini, Tartufo.
Pizza along the way to Piazza Navona from Pantheon. Little shop. Really terrific.
Alberto

AnnieP -

Actually we found Vinando because we tried waiting for a table at the restaurant across the street and found the hostess to be so rude that we left and decided to try the place across the street. It turned out to be Vinando - and became one of my all time favorite Roman restaurants.

I'm not very good with restaurant names, as many times we just walk around menu browsing until we find one that looks good. That being said, I loved so many things in Rome. You have to be careful though; its very easy to pay a lot of money for a mediocre meal.

My favorites are gnocci, the cheese platters, and the lasagna. We also had some incredible appetizers. We usually stick with the house wine, and we love limoncello and prosecco.

My favorite gelato place in Rome is Giolitti.

Now I'm getting hungry!
Tracy

wow Kateny! That's too bad about that woman, its actually a great little restaurant. We had a similar experience at Ambasciata d' Abruzzo, from all the excellent reviews, we had been dying to go there and booked weeks in advance but they were beyond rude when we arrived, it was like they resented us for having to wait for our reserved table because they were busy. It really actually ruined the whole experience.

However, I agree that there is just something very special about Vinando, we loved it also. My husband was not in Rome with me last time but I cant wait to bring him there. The staff there were just lovely also and actually remembered the wine we ordered the night before when we came back next night!

Appreciate all the superb feedback.