ek, enjoy this trip - we, too, feel responsible for it in the meantime!!!! (That's why WE are so green with envy - you're not alone, Eloise!!)
And please report after coming home!

Well, as for Franco's secrets, the first to reveal is that I've never said I'm a native Italian - this is in fact a Fodor's myth, created who knows by whom. And I've never been to Trionfale - no idea what it's like, sorry. Our first and foremost Roman expert, no doubt, is you, Eloise, and certainly not me.
Ok, so much for your disappointment. Nevertheless, I can answer one question, and perhaps also the second. On my favourite place in Rome, there is actually one of my "favourite" threads: http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34792021
And though my Sicilian is really poor (true Sicilian dialect is almost impossible to decode, even for non-Sicilian Italians), I think I could have the answer to your Sicilian puzzle, Eloise. If they happen to say that only from the second course on, it should be "buon proseguimento", a really strange Italian wish, but quite common: happy continuation! Common not just for meals/restaurants; Italians would also wish you buon proseguimento of your holiday, for example.

Once again, ek: enjoy Rome plus side trips; and we'll ask you about every single course of every single meal as soon as you'll be back, even if you might then regret to ever have asked us :)

Thank you both for the warm send-off. In between packing and printing out a few SlowFood descriptions from their website (why did I not think of doing this earlier?), I have been rereading some of your posts.
Franco..In your enthusiastic description of Sora Lella, you say that this is the place to eat abbacchio. But can abbacchio be eaten at all times of the year, ie, in January? Or would I be receiving agnello?

I like lamb very much! I am sorry to be so breif right now; I will check back later. Again, you both are wonderful companions!

ek, I don't think there should be a problem in getting abbacchio now - it's a myth that suckling lambs are available only in spring. It's just that it is the traditional Easter meal in many countries, that's why MOST suckling lambs are being sold and eaten in spring: and that's why, in spring, you have the highest possibility to get BAD suckling lamb... briefly, there are different lamb races, meat races and milk races; and while you'd normally, i.e. in all seasons except for spring, eat only meat races, of course, and here primarily the female lambs, around Easter ALL available lambs are being sold: meat races, male and female - and the male lambs of the milk races, whose meat is way inferior.
So I hope you'll be able to enjoy GREAT abbacchio dishes. Again, have a wonderful trip.

Franco thank you so much. That is very good information, as usual. I am not sure I understand the difference between a milk race and a meat race but I know I can now order abbacchio without fear. To tell you the truth, I once did order it at this time of year in Rome at a place on Via di Ripetta. (Maybe Buca di Ripetta or a place close to that one on the same side of the street) But I did not think it was anything special. But it was so long ago, who knows...I don't think my tastes were as developed even a few years ago.

I remember reading once that a diner should ask whether the lamb has been just roasted, or has been roasted earlier in the day and re-heated, and that that would determine whether or not one should order this dish. What do you think of that advice? It makes sense but of course with my limited Italian I am not sure if I could get that question across. Perhaps they are roasted for lunch in many places and then re-heated for dinner.

Whatever your nationality and place of residence, you are a true aficionado of all things Italy and I commend you. Too often one does not have the same enthusiasm about his or her own country and its foods and other strong points. I don't, to be sure.

I am leaving later today so will check back soon....
all the best, Franco.

Well, the difference between milk and meat races is just simple: meat races have tasty, and plenty of, meat, but their milk is scarce, and of poor quality; milk races give plenty of good milk, but they haven't much meat on their bones, and its taste is of much poorer quality.
As far as roasting and re-heating, you're certainly right, but I'm not sure if asking is the best idea - they could tell you anything, couldn't they? I'd eat abbacchio in a place in which I trust: yes, Sora Lella, for example, or of course Osteria all'Angelo, if they'd happen to have prepared abbacchio. Once, "Franco er Cacciatore" was THE place for eating abbacchio (on Piazza Trilussa, in Trastevere), but alas, Franco and his wife are off to their pension for quite many years now. (And no, it's not me!!!)

I've always love abbacchio. But I think you guys have just ruined it for me. Sometimes it's best not to know too much.
LOL

So that is why you are recommending restaurants: You are actually a restauranteur and president of the Syndicato of Trattoria Owners! The mystery deepens!

You are correct: I am sure they would tell me what I wanted to hear about the lamb at most places. I have Sora Lella and all'Angelo duly noted and can call ahead and see if it is on the menu. It looks like I am going to be eating a lot of meals in one week! I just read (in a Rome issue of Gourmet magazine from 2003) that Monday is mussels and Tuesday is bollito misto in Rome; I knew about Thursday gnocchi and Friday bacalao and Saturday tripe, but had no heard about these other
dishes relegated to days of the week; I did not even think of mussels or bollito as Romans dishes!

Ek, I’m glad you have Franco’s assurance that you will find good abbacchio. Again, enjoy, enjoy!

And you always say the tactful thing. <b>My</b> reaction to Franco’s revelation that he is not a native Italian is like that of a five-year-old who has been told that there is no Santa Claus! It doesn’t really change anything: Just as the five-year-old continues to receive Christmas presents, I am sure we’ll continue to benefit from Franco’s knowledge of Italy and Italian cuisine. But, but... How many non-Italians know the language so well? How many non-Italians have ever heard of, much less been to Cornacchio? To quote Franco himself: “Puzzles over puzzles”!

In any case, Franco, we now know that your favourite place in Rome is in Trastevere and, if I’m not far wrong, the southern part of Trastevere. Even though I once got hopelessly lost in that part of Trastevere (my sense of direction is incredibly poor, as I think I’ve had occasion to mention), I can perhaps understand your preference. For one thing, it’s very easy to get to Sora Lella from there. (To my shame, I must admit that I have never been on the Isola Tiberina...) But given your predilection for San Marco in Venice, I might have expected you to prefer something within the Pantheon/Campo de Fiori/Piazza Navona triangle.

And yes, I have been wished “buon proseguimento”, for both meals and holidays, but it’s not quite the word that I am hearing in my mind but that I cannot manage to spell. The next time I hear it, I shall grab pencil and paper and write it down!

Ek, I didn’t know about the mussels and the bollito misto either. Mussels I can perhaps imagine; bollito misto seems to me totally misplaced in Rome. But whether you have these two dishes or not, we shall, as Franco has said, ask for details of every single course of every single meal.

Your mission then, should you accept it, is to sample and savor every available Roman specialty. Have a wonderful trip!

Ek, about the Vatican Museums: Another thread has just reminded me of the changed hours, as of Monday.

You might want to look at them at
www.vatican.va. (Click Vatican Museums, then Info Museums, then Opening hours to see the new 2007 calendar.)

The change is basically that individual visitors will only be admitted starting at 10:00 a.m.

Buon viaggio!

Eloise:
Ekscrunchy accepts the mission and will complete to the best of her abilities! And will submit the report in due time! Meanwhile I have some time here between forays to the (very large) suitcase sitting on the floor....Eloise, the issue of Gourmet that I mentioned is really a good one on Rome, from 2003.

I wish there was some way of editing these reports; every time I read &quot;del Sanato&quot; at the top, I cringe.

Ek, I'm glad I caught you in time to give you my best wishes!

I know the Gourmet of which you speak; it's in one of the unsightly piles of magazines that I could not bear to throw away. It's also the one that scared me off ever trying Al Moro... Have you ever eaten there?

Eloise, to make up (I hope!) for your sad loss of faith in Santa Claus, I'll forward your buon appetito puzzle to a Sicilian acquaintance. Though she is as educated as speaking spotless Italian without the slightest hint of Sicilian dialect (you, as an intimate Italian expert, know what that means: she is EXTRAORDINARILY educated, since heavy dialect, in Italy, is familiar even with very educated people), I hope she'll know what the girls on your agriturismo keep wishing you. Check this thread, I'll post the result of my investigation here.

Eloise, I must admit that Al Moro sounds intruguing. I have never eaten there and not sure if I want to try. That part about being shunted off to the &quot;bad&quot; room if you are a lowly tourist kind of bugs me. I know restaurants do that all the time but somehow it seems very blatant at Al Moro. But it does get good reports from other sources as well; Mimi Sheraton in the Times seems to like it. If you do not have that article from the NY Times I will post it for you.

But the issue here is: Is the food so much better than at many other places that it is worth putting up with all that? And I imagine the prices are very high. The dollar is not so good now, as you know, and while I don't mind spending money for a great experience, I don't want to be made to feel like a rube. But who knows, it is very tempting to eat there; I wonder, however, how tight the reservations are? I suppose I will follow my usual M.O. which is to walk over there and have a look at the place and the menu before deciding. (At some places, I know tourists from NA are shunted off into the lesser rooms because of the smoking issue; it is assumed that no one here smokes and that we all are allergic to second-hand smoke.)



The other place that I am curious about is Colline Emiliane; I know it is not Roman, but Bolognese food is so good that I might have to break down and go against my usual &quot;regional food&quot; dictum.

I have reservations for tomorrow night at Ditirambo. They are open on Sunday night and I liked the food the one time I ate there, the last time I was in Rome about 5 years ago. And Tuesday night for Trattoria Monti; I hope that one is not overrun with tourists (heavens, I sound like the slowtrav people..) I don't know what it is, but somehow the experience is dimished for me when I am surrounded by tables filled with Americans. (I know I can write this without getting blasted because no one else here is reading our &quot;conversations&quot; except Franco.) It is interesting, but if the diners at the next table are, for example, from France, I don't mind as much, maybe because I cannot understand the conversation.

Well, as usual I am all off topic. It is a wonder I get anything done the way I digress. I am going to try to post the Mimi Sheraton article for you; I think Al Moro was mentioned by Frank Bruni from the NY Times as well. I just hope you can access these articles.

Eloise, here is Sheraton's article with mention of Al Moro; I just hope you can read it:


http://travel.nytimes.com/2006/03/26/travel/26rome.html

And here is Mario Batali's page on Rome eating, to save for your next trip:




http://www.babbonyc.com/italytravel-rome.html

Ek, many thanks; no problem opening the Mimi Sheraton article. Al Moro does seem to do the &quot;separatist&quot; thing more blatantly than other places, but it also happened to me in a totally unknown, totally undistinguished restaurant near the Chiesa Nuova, recommended, incidentally, by a former poster here whose claims to intimate knowledge of Italy I always felt were somewhat suspect.

I look forward to your Monti report with eager anticipation. I've been trying to get there for what seems like years. It has been getting considerably more &quot;press&quot; recently, so I hope it has not been spoiled. And I agree: Eating in Rome surrounded by (North) Americans is a bit of a downer. May you be spared it.

Franco, There is nothing that you can do to make up for my loss of faith (I say as I burst into tears...). But I do appreciate your trying to track down that elusive word. I'm afraid you overestimate my ear for Italian, though: Unless someone speaks a very pronounced local dialect, I am unlikely to detect it.

Ek, once again: Buon appetito!

Eloise, j&oacute; napot k&iacute;v&aacute;nok: just a quick note to let you know that while ek is enjoying Rome (I hope), the puzzle-solving efforts have been spreading: even the Sicilian lady has not had an immediate answer (what a relief for me...), and now it's her who has taken over the research work. We'll get back to you!

Franco, hello. All right, so you're not a Roman restaurateur, you're not even Italian. But I'm not about to believe that you're Hungarian!

Many thanks for your research efforts. Since my joint research project in international economics with Ek (I also hope she's enjoying Rome; but how could she not?) fell through, I feel that I must seek urgent funding to undertake a project in Sicilian-Italian linguistics, i.e., to return to my Sicilian agriturismo for on-the-spot research. Although, comparatively speaking, we've been having a very mild winter, I think I could do with some Sicilian sunshine and Sicilian cuisine.

Eloise and Franco, I am back and still reeling from the sheer joy of spending a full week in Rome. Although it may be a few days before I get to my Rome food report, I have to let you both know the answer to the question that has undoubtedly been on your minds. Yes, ekscrunchy had the pajata. And it was fabulous! Truly great and not at all off-putting, but actually rather delicate in both texture and flavor. I will write the full report soon; I did go to Trattoria Monti and thought most of the food was delicious, but the pasta was, surprisingly, the weak point of the meal. It is quite upscale (white tablecloths; contemporary art on the walls; soft lighting!!) but the other diners seemed to be locals on the night we were there. I liked the place a lot and would certainly go back. We had to book in advance, as quite a few people arrived and were turned away for lack of reservations on a Tuesday night in January. (This was true of almost everyplace we ate, even at lunch) More soon!

Ek, Welcome home! Although it sounds as if you might prefer to be in Rome still...

I look forward to the blow-by-blow, but in the meantime, congratulations on the pajata. You make it sound appealing enough that I might even try
it. And this May I’m definitely going to try to get to Trattoria Monti.