marvelousmouse

After an unsuccessful encounter with a horribly rude restaurant host tonight, I'm still craving seafood, just not willing to go back there.

So...any favorite seafood/Meditteranean joints in Rome? Great food, unpretentious, preferably.

Also seriously craving suppli. Or arancini? Wasn't sure if there was a difference nor, if there is, which I've had. Any recommendations? Would like a place with a few (or several) options so I can try different ones.

vinoroma

Don't call them arancini here! Suppli try trapizzino, pizzarium or supplizio for it.
Good seafood is expensive in rome. Best to be found at il san lorenzo but very upscale and expensive. I am very picky with fish quality and can't recommend any other place.

vinoroma

Inexpensive and relatively ok eating at mercato centrale, btw - i guess your hostel will be close. Closed today, but when it re-opens try bonci's pizza, trapizzino, smth meaty at liberati and artichokes at the artichoke stand.

marvelousmouse

Thanks, vinoroma, didn't realize there was a Mercato centrale in Rome. Any ideas of where to buy basic staples today? I need some chicken for the pasta I'm making tonight but not having much luck finding a grocery store. In Trastevere.

Pity about Il San Lorenzo. That was the place with the unpleasant guy but it did look good.

vinoroma

Nothing will be open today in trastevere guaranteed open supermarket is at termini (there are two).
Oh, that is horrible to hear about il san lorenzo, sorry about that!

marvelousmouse

Oh no this may be the day of snacks then. I don't think I am up for a bus ride to termini.

annhig

MM - you can't leave us dangling - what did the horrible host do? he should be named and shamed!

Hope you fair better today. Rome is not a place I would go for seafood, but great meat, and veg. Have you been to the ghetto? there are some terrific restaurants there, and you can get battered fish made with salt cod, which is very good.

marvelousmouse

Lol! Said very haughtily he was entirely booked before I could ask. I believe that. But then I asked if I could make a reservation for later in the week- he sneered and claimed he was too too busy to be bothered. Which is what I don't believe. They weren't slammed, and he wasn't doing anything. Well, standing around, brooding, staring suspiciously at passing tourists. Quite the nastiest individual I've met the entire trip.

Ah well. Checked reviews online after because I was curious. Several Americans warning folks not to bother if you aren't rich and Roman. At least one Italian (roughly translated) saying they'd loved it the first time but the service was unforgivable the next time. I eat out a lot, all sorts of restaurants, and generally when I have that kind of interaction with the host, it means that for whatever reason, they've decided they're above pleasantries. I doubt it's the American thing but who knows? I could be too young looking, too solo, too female, too unattractive, not foodie looking enough. If I had made a reservation, it's entirely likely that it would be a dreadful table by the kitchen. One can always hope for an act of karma- perhaps he'll act like that towards a blogger and it will go viral Oh well, life is entirely to short to give my money to a place with employees like that!

Have gathered Rome is not the place for seafood. Where is the ghetto? Nearest landmark to the best area to wander around in search of food, please?

vinoroma

You could walk over to the ghetto - depending on where you are in trastevere, just walk the viale towards east and when you cross the river, the area to the right of the big street you are on is the ghetto. I am afraid in testaccio everything on snack/streetfood level is closed, and in trastevere only the most tourist-trappy places will be open.
Try la tavernaccia da bruno in the far end of trastevere for very delicious (simple) food prepared and served by the most friendly family ever. They are open lunch and dinner and usully resercations a must but a single person might get lucky...

annhig

Lol! Said very haughtily he was entirely booked before I could ask. I believe that. But then I asked if I could make a reservation for later in the week- he sneered and claimed he was too too busy to be bothered.

lol, indeed. anyone who is "too busy" to be bothered to take a reservation for later in the week deserves all the bad reviews he gets. Very foolish. Life is indeed too short to be bothered with the likes of him.

Reminds me of the restaurant I sat in in Florence for about 10 mins while the staff served everyone around me, but couldn't manage to give me a menu. or a drink. or anything. [actually there were two like that]. No prizes for guessing what I did. And the place I found was so friendly and brilliant I ended up eating there both nights. [But I have to say that the Four Seasons in Florence where I went for their Sunday brunch could not have been nicer or more welcoming to a single female traveller who looked rather frayed around the edges, having just stepped off a train - for that reason alone I would go again].

marvelousmouse

"so friendly and brilliant I ended up eating there both nights. [But I have to say that the Four Seasons in Florence where I went for their Sunday brunch could not have been nicer or more welcoming to a single female traveller who looked rather frayed around the edges, having just stepped off a train - for that reason alone I would go again]."

Yep! Been in both situations more than once. It's always places like Four Seasons where you think you'll be snubbed but those are often the ones that get it so right. I don't get the whole rudeness thing from a business standpoint either. Restaurants make their most money off add ons like desserts and drinks, and I don't think anyone ever goes "oh gee this place has treated me like gunk on the bottom of their shoe, so let's linger and have another cocktail".

And vinoroma- as it turns out, when I wasn't looking, I found TWO supermarkets today- open til 8 or 9. One was piazza Nicosia, I think the other was closer to piazza Navona. For anyone in the same situation...it helps to know (as I found out researching last night) is that the entrance is usually very small- one door- so the store is either maze like or long and narrow once you're inside. But even though they're called "expresses" they're full service grocery stores, generally the size of a small town grocery at home.

vinoroma

Ah yes, i thought you wanted to stay in trastevere - more options on that side of town. But from tomorrow on everything is back to regular anyways....
Again, i am really sorry how you were handled at il san lorenzo, it is despicable. I don't understand businesses that do not care about business, either. I will make a little note, though, that sometimes there are lost in translation situations (not just due to language but also to cultural differences) that leave both sides frustrated and unhappy - have seen it happen enough times that i can say it is a thing. On another note - restaurants earning off of drinks and dessert is not true in Italy, at least if the place is not michelin restaurant level. There are no cocktails in roman restaurants (except for one or two exceptional places) and no staying around to drink after dinner. Dinner itself is long and you drink during that, mainly wine, which has barely a mark-up as it is seen as part of dinner and not an add on. Definitely have some if you decide to have a nice leisure sit down meal during your time in rome!

annhig

MM - I agree about the rudeness detracting from sales - and with the internet it just seems daft.

glad you found a supermerkato that was open - I know what you mean about the entrances; they are obviously aimed at those who know where they are, not strangers to the area. I love looking in italian supermarkets - my favourite find was a frozen octopus in the one round the corner from the Academia in Florence. I knew that octopus was popular in Italy but a frozen one? really? I sometimes wonder if it's still there.

More importantly though, did you find anything decent to eat???

vinoroma

Octopus is actually one of the rare food items that improves with freezing! The cell structure is destroyed and when cooked there is no issue with it being tough. Most octopus most anywhere most of the time is actually from frozen as they live only in certain areas and have a certain season for hunting/catching.

marvelousmouse

Vinoroma- yeah, realized I wasn't clear on the grocery store thing. I didn't mind walking- Rome is actually a hopping place on NYD! It's odd- usually in NA the crowds come out on NYE all day, but here they just flood the streets the day after. Live music and closed street on the other side of the river which was terrific. I just really did not want to make the trip to termini- it's a long haul and the buses here drive me crazy.


nope, I know, I totally understand the cultural difference. I took that into account. It wasn't a language barrier, or frustration- have had that over here both times, as my Italian is pretty much nonexistent. This guy just had an appallingly bad attitude and a nasty manner. Spoke exquisite English unlike most places I've eaten at here. Wine doesn't have a mark up, you're right about that and it's awesome- BUT things like champagne do, and certainly multiple courses do at a place like that. I mean, I understand what you are saying, but polite service means I'll stick around for a while. Had a snack at a place in Florence like Annhig is talking about, where you just never get acknowledged, and because of that, I spent 10 rather than 50-60. Spent an extra 30 at a brunch in Venice because the service was so pleasant. Even if they don't make a lot of money from "add ons" you can't tell me that appalling service doesn't affect their bottom line. I somewhat understand it at the touristy restaurants. They aren't going for a good reputation. I don't get it at a place like il San Lorenzo because of the prices and the fact that a lot of people in the reviews were referred to it by their hotel. If a concierge had referred me to that place, you can bet I'd give him an earful, and if I was that concierge, that hotel would drop from my list. Because maybe some people don't care about concierge quality, but that's pretty much the only reason I ever stay at 4/5 star hotels, and if they screw that up, I wouldn't return.

And then, aside from that, if someone had referred me to that place, I probably would have checked reviews. I don't put a lot of stock in them, but when there's a pattern of people experience rude service, it's likely a real problem. I'm not talking about crazy people who never dine out or people who were expecting something for nothing. I'm talking about well heeled, experienced travelers. So that would have influenced my decision to make a reservation- because I've had the same kind of experience in the US, especially on the east coast. It's not a cultural difference- it's a business that feels like they've reached a level of success that now they can be exclusive and rude about it. You get it on the west coast too but usually that's not the expensive places- usually it's the hipster havens.

Annhig- yes, of course!!! Croissant and cappuccino for breakfast, Arancini and zucchini fritte for lunch, gelato for afternoon snack (of course) and then I'm back at the hostel where I cooked some pasta from one of the specialty stores and had a miniature prosecco and tiramisu. "Fast food" is really good here- I've pretty much decided that if I don't have a reservation, I'll just snack my way through town. One of the things about Rome (Italy in general) that does affect me is the fact that most dinner places don't open til 730 and most bars close their kitchens during lunch. So as a result I'm doing less sit down dining, just because I don't always think to make a reservation and if you don't do that, it can be a problem. Romans really like dining out. Which has two big consequences- 1- reservations are pretty much mandatory at anyplace you'd want to eat and 2- there are tons of hole in the wall quick options or bars that serve really excellent street food. Last night, after that run in with the rude guy, I made a few reservations later this week and then wandered into a hole in the wall in Trastevere that had "gourmet" burgers and homemade chips. So good! I'm a much happier mouse once fed

marvelousmouse

And I saw a frozen whole octopus in one of those supermarkets tonight! So funny!

There was also a seafood mix with mussels, shrimp, and whole mini octopus. Looked really tempting but I've had mixed luck with prepared foods. It's funny about cultural differences- you can't find boneless chicken here, but you can find whole octopi or pate in a basic grocery store

vinoroma

Sounds like you did have a good day of eating! Yes, we walked thru the festa on lungotevere, too. A pity it wasn't advertised more, nice jazz music as we were there. And don't misunderstand me, i totally understand your experience at il san lorenzo and am not saying bad service is negligable. It is very Rome - unfortunately. Your observations about roman dining are right and good idea to make reservations for later in the week - where did you pick? Just walked by or recommendations? I will be happy to give a couple of recommendations, too.

marvelousmouse

One is la cabana and one is hosteria dei numeri primi hostinati. I feel like someone suggested la cabana but can't remember who, and the second was definitely a walk by- I just thought the space was cozy and the food looked good. Always looking for restaurant recs!! I have one day without a reservation anyway, but I'm not all that set on the two above. It's just that I've been walking so much that by the time it's dinner, I need a reservation mostly because I just want to sit and have a glass of wine. I usually "wing it" in other cities by eating in the bar or at off hours, but I've only seen 1 restaurant with a bar, and as mentioned above, the off hours thing does not work here.

Open to any location, but would especially like a restaurant in the monti area one day- I took a tour there yesterday, and I'm thinking of returning later this week to roam around.

And random sightseeing question...as you seem to be fairly familiar with Italy, have you been to Ostia Antica or Pompeii? I'm playing around with the idea of a day trip, and Pompeii is on my bucket list, but think that might be a bit too much of a trek. Ostia antica has been recommended as a good alternative. And I'm open to other day trip ideas as well. I love Rome, but I'm thinking I might need a break from the city madness.

annhig

thank you vinoroma for sorting out my mistake about the frozen octopus - amazing what one learns here. it's funny the preconceptions that we have about food. I had imagined that italians would be very sniffy about anything frozen, but you have exploded that myth for me. I remember watching a restaurant chef in Orbetello preparing octopus salad from whiteout was was obvious that she believed we brits understood all about cooking octopus, which was far from being the case. OTOH it came as a shock to her that we knew how to make a stew.

Glad that you managed to eat well despite Mr Grumpy and good luck with those reservations the rest of the trip. If you're stuck perhaps you should follow the example of my italian teacher who simply approaches someone who looks like a local and asks them where is a good place to eat. not something that brits feel very comfortable doing but it seemed to work for her.

marvelousmouse

Annhig- usually, the talking to locals thing is what I do, but the language barrier has made it a little more difficult. Fewer people seem to be fluent English speakers, so striking up a conversation is harder. I can ask for directions to something specific- like gelato- but when it comes to asking for recommendations, its a little more difficult.

And admittedly, it's a result of where I'm staying. Not a social or high end hostel and the front desk folks have definitely different levels of English fluency.