Where to Eat When in Rome…
Ah Roma, the land of pasta, pizza, and gelato. Here’s my Rome food tour, as told in the style of a traditional Italian formal meal structure. Pasta-bly my favorite food tour yet. Enjoy!
Supplìs
Supplìs are these magical cheese-filled fried risotto balls. The quintessential street food. Warm and gooey yet perfectly fried on the outside.
1. Supplì Roma
Trastevere (Via di S. Francesco a Ripa, 137, 00153 Roma RM, Italy)
While there are many stores showcasing it, I tracked down this shop that specializes in it. Supplì Roma rotates 3 different flavor combos each day and mmm’mm I loved it. Cash & standing room only; no bathroom.
Pasta
Sauces and pasta are thought of separately in Rome.
Classic sauces in Rome: cacio e peppe (pecorino cheese & pepper), carbonera (crispy bacon, pecorino and parmesan cheese, eggs, pepper), and spuntature e salcicce (pork, sausages, parmesan cheese, carrots, celery, onions and tomato sauce). During this trip, I learned that I’m a big fan of all 3 of these sauces on top of hand-made fettuccini or gnocchi.
We had it all and more at the following locations.
2. Pasta e Vino Osteria
Trastevere (Via della Pelliccia 12/13, 00153 Rome, Italy)
At this restaurant, you have the option of mix and matching various pastas and sauces, which was super fun! We have some similar Italian restaurants in SF (e.g., Italian Homemade) but obviously it’s better in the motherland.
3. Roma Sparita
Trastevere (Piazza di Santa Cecilia, 24, 00153 Roma RM, Italy)
The tagliolini cacio e pepe was blessed by Anthony Bourdain. For good reason. It was delicious. That said, if you come here, this is the only item to order. Other menu items we tried such as the fried artichoke and were subpar.
Pizza
The pizzas I was most drawn to in Rome were actually not the typical rectangular pizzas cut and bought by the kg, but instead personal pizzas (although let’s be real here, every pizza is a personal pizza if you try hard enough). The display cases were lined with different flavors refilled fresh.
Both options were delicious, and there’s plenty of different classic and inventive combinations to choose from, so can’t go wrong. Just pick one depending on where you are on the map.
4. Pinsa
Prati, north of the Vatican City (Via dei Gracchi, 7, 00192 Roma RM, Italy)
Only has seating for 8 bar stools; no bathroom. Fantastic before / after visiting St. Peter’s Basilica or the Vatican Museum as it’s only a 5–10 minute walk away (depending on how fast you roll after eating of course).
5. Pinsere
Ludovisi (Via Flavia, 98, 00187 Roma RM, Italy)
Standing room only (again, for like 8 people). Brilliant date spot if you’re looking to grab gelato after… or before (see below for my favorite gelatarias). No bathroom.
6. Forno Campo de Fiori
Ponte (Piazza Campo De’ Fiori 22, 00186 Rome, Italy)
For those craving that quintessential Roman rectangular pizza sold by the kg (me as I write this post), my foodie friend David K. swears by this place. While I ran out of time this trip, I’ve got it marked for next time.
Seafood
Fresh caught seafood in a ROMA-ntic setting, a foodie’s dream.
7. Aroma
Celia (Via Labicana, 125, 00184 Roma RM, Italy)
We chose to dine at 1-star Michelin restaurant Aroma, where beyond the food we also enjoyed views of the Colosseum. They delighted us at every turn. Highly recommend if you’re looking for a nice restaurant with a killer view.
Gelato and other desserts!
Gelato is Italian for ice cream and tiramisu‘s direct translation is literally “pick me up”.
Like ice cream, gelato also starts out with the same custard base, that’s where the similarities stop. Different proportions of milk (much higher), cream (lower), and eggs (much lower, sometimes even 0) are incorporated into gelato, and it’s churned at a much slower rate than ice cream. This results in a much denser, creamier tasting concoction.
We tried 5 gelatarias during our time in Rome and 1 tiramisu shop and the 4 shops below are highly recommend by yours truly.
8. Come Il Latte
Ludovisi (Via Silvio Spaventa, 24/26, 00187 Roma RM, Italy)
Come Il Latte literally translates to “like milk” and I can attest. They’ve got some of the creamiest treats in town. AND they’ve got a chocolate fountain to fill the bottom of your cone and drizzle on a wafer to top-off your dessert. Options include dark chocolate and white chocolate. Decadence, because you deserve it.
We tried pistachio and nociolla (hazelnut). Loved both.
9. Gelataria La Romana
Ludovisi (Via Venti Settembre, 60, 00187 Roma RM, Italy)
Just 5 min down the street from Come Il Latte, this place also boasts the creamy texture. We enjoyed the crema del 1947 and nociolla.
10. Fatamorgana
Multiple locations: Trastevere (Via Roma Libera, 11, 00153 Roma RM, Italy), Chiavari, Rione I Monti, etc.
This shop boasted really interesting flavors such as one called avocado, lime, and white avocado. Would highly recommend.
11. Two Sizes
Ponte (Via del Governo Vecchio, 88, 00186 Roma RM, Italy)
This shop in an alley right off of Piazza Novano specializes in tiramisu (and they also make cannoli). Perfection. We enjoyed both the traditional tiramisu and the pistachio tiramisu.
