Please recommend your favorite non touristy, non super fine dining place in Rome!
Apr 27, 2015, 1:25 pm
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: Sep 2009
Location: ORD
Programs: AA Platinum, PC Plat, Hertz 5*
Posts: 350
Please recommend your favorite non touristy, non super fine dining place in Rome!
Hello!
We will be in Rome in May, staying for 3 days in the Historical Center. I searched other threads but recommendations are more than a few years old.
Would love to have current recommendations for non touristy, non super fine dining (since we have a toddler).
I will be getting the couple of Rome food apps which I saw here like Rome for Foodies and eat Rome but if you have a favorite wonderful place, please recommend it!
thanks!
We will be in Rome in May, staying for 3 days in the Historical Center. I searched other threads but recommendations are more than a few years old.
Would love to have current recommendations for non touristy, non super fine dining (since we have a toddler).
I will be getting the couple of Rome food apps which I saw here like Rome for Foodies and eat Rome but if you have a favorite wonderful place, please recommend it!
thanks!
Apr 27, 2015, 7:35 pm
#2
Join Date: Mar 2011
Location: SFO, VCE
Programs: AA EXP >4 MM, Lifetime Plat
Posts: 2,881
Hello!
We will be in Rome in May, staying for 3 days in the Historical Center. I searched other threads but recommendations are more than a few years old.
Would love to have current recommendations for non touristy, non super fine dining (since we have a toddler).
I will be getting the couple of Rome food apps which I saw here like Rome for Foodies and eat Rome but if you have a favorite wonderful place, please recommend it!
thanks!
We will be in Rome in May, staying for 3 days in the Historical Center. I searched other threads but recommendations are more than a few years old.
Would love to have current recommendations for non touristy, non super fine dining (since we have a toddler).
I will be getting the couple of Rome food apps which I saw here like Rome for Foodies and eat Rome but if you have a favorite wonderful place, please recommend it!
thanks!
Near Campo de Fiori is Roscioli Salumeria. They call themselves a salumeria, or deli more or less, but it is anything but. The prices are very reasonable, it's informal enough to bring a toddler, and the food is some of the best in Rome.
You can get traditional Roman dishes like cacio e pepe (12E), pasta amatriciana (14E), pasta carbonara (15E), etc. The secondi cost more, usually in the low 20's, but these are very low prices for unbelievably delicious, authentic, non-touristy food in Rome. With the rise in value of the dollar this is cheaper than most italian restaurants in the USA.
If I were in Rome for 3 days and I had to eat there every night I wouldn't mind at all. Like all good places in Rome, you absolutely must get a reservation 3-7 days in advance. http://www.salumeriaroscioli.com/restaurant/#download
Apr 27, 2015, 7:51 pm
#3
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: SEA
Posts: 3,955
The secondi sound great, but there's no chance I'd make it out of the antipasti and primi with any ability to keep eating.
Apr 28, 2015, 7:35 am
#4
Original Poster
Join Date: Sep 2009
Location: ORD
Programs: AA Platinum, PC Plat, Hertz 5*
Posts: 350
Is there a particular part of the historical center?
Near Campo de Fiori is Roscioli Salumeria. They call themselves a salumeria, or deli more or less, but it is anything but. The prices are very reasonable, it's informal enough to bring a toddler, and the food is some of the best in Rome.
http://www.salumeriaroscioli.com/restaurant/#download
Near Campo de Fiori is Roscioli Salumeria. They call themselves a salumeria, or deli more or less, but it is anything but. The prices are very reasonable, it's informal enough to bring a toddler, and the food is some of the best in Rome.
http://www.salumeriaroscioli.com/restaurant/#download
Apr 28, 2015, 11:38 am
#5
Join Date: Nov 2012
Location: YOW
Posts: 1,024
At Roscioli's, I go for the burrata and the pasta and skip the secondo.
Just down the street and around the corner from Roscioli's is Emma Pizzeria. (part of the Roscioli family) http://www.emmapizzeria.com/
And if you are in the area you really need to check out Caraphina gelato, it is a couple doors down from the Roscioli bakery on Via dei Chiavari
Just down the street and around the corner from Roscioli's is Emma Pizzeria. (part of the Roscioli family) http://www.emmapizzeria.com/
And if you are in the area you really need to check out Caraphina gelato, it is a couple doors down from the Roscioli bakery on Via dei Chiavari
Apr 28, 2015, 6:09 pm
#6
Join Date: Nov 2002
Location: Missouri, USA
Programs: Marriott Platinum Elite, AA Platinum, Delta Gold
Posts: 100
Wow! Roscioli's looks great! Unfortunately we will only be in Rome 1 day precruise and it will be a Sunday.
Having a hard time finding recommendations for a Sunday night dinner. But, we will definitely put it on our list of places to visit on our next trip!!
Having a hard time finding recommendations for a Sunday night dinner. But, we will definitely put it on our list of places to visit on our next trip!!
Apr 29, 2015, 8:36 am
#7
Join Date: Nov 2012
Location: YOW
Posts: 1,024
Restaurants in the Jewish Ghetto will be open. Piperno or Giggetto are classic Jewish Roman, nothing too flashy.
Apr 29, 2015, 3:06 pm
#8
Join Date: Nov 2002
Location: Missouri, USA
Programs: Marriott Platinum Elite, AA Platinum, Delta Gold
Posts: 100
Currently we have a reservation at the Westin Excelsior, although I have been looking into hotels closer to the Pantheon.
Piperno would be great for lunch, as I see they close at 2:20 on Sunday. Thanks for that suggestion.
We have a 4:20p.m. Underground Colosseum tour so would love to find some great food for afterwards.
Last edited by syndney; Apr 29, 2015 at 3:20 pm Reason: sp
Apr 29, 2015, 6:22 pm
#9
Join Date: Mar 2011
Location: SFO, VCE
Programs: AA EXP >4 MM, Lifetime Plat
Posts: 2,881
I hope I'm not hijacking aterug's thread.
Currently we have a reservation at the Westin Excelsior, although I have been looking into hotels closer to the Pantheon.
Piperno would be great for lunch, as I see they close at 2:20 on Sunday. Thanks for that suggestion.
We have a 4:20p.m. Underground Colosseum tour so would love to find some great food for afterwards.
Currently we have a reservation at the Westin Excelsior, although I have been looking into hotels closer to the Pantheon.
Piperno would be great for lunch, as I see they close at 2:20 on Sunday. Thanks for that suggestion.
We have a 4:20p.m. Underground Colosseum tour so would love to find some great food for afterwards.
In front of the Pantheon the piazza is ringed by restaurants that are open all day long, seven days a week. It's not good food. I've been down to the basement of several of them. Most of the food is frozen food. The best restaurant near the Pantheon, Armando al Pantheon, is unfortunately for you, closed on Sundays.
However, there is one other good one across the street from the Pantheon, La Rosetta. Very high end, Italian seafood restaurant. Localino Da Claudio is another Italian seafood restaurant open on Sundays near Via Veneto, which is within walking distance, especially if you wind up staying at the Westin Excelsior.
Al Moro is near the Fountain of Trevi, an easy walk from the Pantheon. Dittirambo and Grappolo D'Oro are near Campo de' Fiori and are also walkable. Also there is Settimio al Pellegrino, a very interesting restaurant. Just a husband and wife who do the whole thing in a small place and offer only a couple of different dishes each night. It's not fancy, it had a paper table cloth if I remember, but it is considered to be one of the best restaurants in Rome.
Lots of tourist traps around Piazza Navona, but La Campana is the oldest restaurant in Rome and is actually pretty good and just a five minute walk from the Pantheon. These are the ones that are open on Sunday, good, and within walking distance from the Pantheon.
I know some others, but you'd either have to take a bus or a cab. One is Cesare del Casaletto in the Monteverde neighborhood. You can walk to Torre Argentino then take the tram and get off at the last stop about 3 miles away. Maybe 30 minutes by bus, 15 minutes by cab. It should be on anyone's list of places to eat when in Rome, even though it is out of the city center.
Flavio al Valavevodetto is in the Testaccio neighborhood about a 15 minute cab ride away. Testaccio is a very typical, working class type of neighborhood. You're not going to see many tourists. It's too complicated to get there easily by bus. It's about a 15 minute cab ride. I just walk it. It's about a 35 minute walk, mostly along the Tiber River. It is supposed to be the place where Carlo Petrini, the founder of Slow Food eats when he is in Rome. It is his favorite restaurant in the city. La Torricella is also nearby and in Testaccio, as is Perili, another one of the best restaurants in the city. Not a fancy place, a neighborhood restaurant, but great, authentic local food.
Other outlying neighborhoods, for seafood in Trastevere La Gensola is open. L'Asino D'Oro in the Monti neighborhood not that far from the Colosseum (I used to go to school near there) is outstanding and open on Sunday.
There are more, but these are the ones that I know are open on Sundays. Email them or call of course to be sure because things change. When you call, remember, these restaurants will be closed between 2-2:30 and 7-8 PM.
Don't even think about going to any of them without a reservation. Maybe La Campana, a high turnover place, but that's it. It's sad sitting in seventh heaven eating one of the best meals in your life, and watching couple after couple being turned away because they didn't have a reservation. Occasionally a solo traveler can get lucky with an early seat, and even then they'll usually tell you can only eat if you promise to finish and get out within an hour because the table is reserved. Italians eat later than Americans so sometimes there is a lucky early seat, but once an Italian gets seated, it's there table for the rest of the night, and if you don't have a reservation, you're not getting in.
Last edited by Perche; Apr 29, 2015 at 6:36 pm
May 1, 2015, 7:28 am
#10
Join Date: Jun 2001
Location: Suwanee,Ga ,usa
Posts: 3,617
We also make at least one stop at Gusto (www.gusto.it) and Pizzeria da Baffetto when in Rome.
May 2, 2015, 10:51 pm
#11
Join Date: Nov 2002
Location: Missouri, USA
Programs: Marriott Platinum Elite, AA Platinum, Delta Gold
Posts: 100
All restaurants in Rome close between 2-2:30 every day that they are open. They reopen around 8PM. If you see a restaurant open in the afternoon it is most likely a tourist trap, or just a fast food type of place. Sundays are tough. Many are closed on Mondays too. For this reason it is even more vital to obtain a reservation for dining on a Sunday.
In front of the Pantheon the piazza is ringed by restaurants that are open all day long, seven days a week. It's not good food. I've been down to the basement of several of them. Most of the food is frozen food. The best restaurant near the Pantheon, Armando al Pantheon, is unfortunately for you, closed on Sundays.
However, there is one other good one across the street from the Pantheon, La Rosetta. Very high end, Italian seafood restaurant. Localino Da Claudio is another Italian seafood restaurant open on Sundays near Via Veneto, which is within walking distance, especially if you wind up staying at the Westin Excelsior.
Al Moro is near the Fountain of Trevi, an easy walk from the Pantheon. Dittirambo and Grappolo D'Oro are near Campo de' Fiori and are also walkable. Also there is Settimio al Pellegrino, a very interesting restaurant. Just a husband and wife who do the whole thing in a small place and offer only a couple of different dishes each night. It's not fancy, it had a paper table cloth if I remember, but it is considered to be one of the best restaurants in Rome.
Lots of tourist traps around Piazza Navona, but La Campana is the oldest restaurant in Rome and is actually pretty good and just a five minute walk from the Pantheon. These are the ones that are open on Sunday, good, and within walking distance from the Pantheon.
I know some others, but you'd either have to take a bus or a cab. One is Cesare del Casaletto in the Monteverde neighborhood. You can walk to Torre Argentino then take the tram and get off at the last stop about 3 miles away. Maybe 30 minutes by bus, 15 minutes by cab. It should be on anyone's list of places to eat when in Rome, even though it is out of the city center.
Flavio al Valavevodetto is in the Testaccio neighborhood about a 15 minute cab ride away. Testaccio is a very typical, working class type of neighborhood. You're not going to see many tourists. It's too complicated to get there easily by bus. It's about a 15 minute cab ride. I just walk it. It's about a 35 minute walk, mostly along the Tiber River. It is supposed to be the place where Carlo Petrini, the founder of Slow Food eats when he is in Rome. It is his favorite restaurant in the city. La Torricella is also nearby and in Testaccio, as is Perili, another one of the best restaurants in the city. Not a fancy place, a neighborhood restaurant, but great, authentic local food.
Other outlying neighborhoods, for seafood in Trastevere La Gensola is open. L'Asino D'Oro in the Monti neighborhood not that far from the Colosseum (I used to go to school near there) is outstanding and open on Sunday.
There are more, but these are the ones that I know are open on Sundays. Email them or call of course to be sure because things change. When you call, remember, these restaurants will be closed between 2-2:30 and 7-8 PM.
Don't even think about going to any of them without a reservation. Maybe La Campana, a high turnover place, but that's it. It's sad sitting in seventh heaven eating one of the best meals in your life, and watching couple after couple being turned away because they didn't have a reservation. Occasionally a solo traveler can get lucky with an early seat, and even then they'll usually tell you can only eat if you promise to finish and get out within an hour because the table is reserved. Italians eat later than Americans so sometimes there is a lucky early seat, but once an Italian gets seated, it's there table for the rest of the night, and if you don't have a reservation, you're not getting in.
In front of the Pantheon the piazza is ringed by restaurants that are open all day long, seven days a week. It's not good food. I've been down to the basement of several of them. Most of the food is frozen food. The best restaurant near the Pantheon, Armando al Pantheon, is unfortunately for you, closed on Sundays.
However, there is one other good one across the street from the Pantheon, La Rosetta. Very high end, Italian seafood restaurant. Localino Da Claudio is another Italian seafood restaurant open on Sundays near Via Veneto, which is within walking distance, especially if you wind up staying at the Westin Excelsior.
Al Moro is near the Fountain of Trevi, an easy walk from the Pantheon. Dittirambo and Grappolo D'Oro are near Campo de' Fiori and are also walkable. Also there is Settimio al Pellegrino, a very interesting restaurant. Just a husband and wife who do the whole thing in a small place and offer only a couple of different dishes each night. It's not fancy, it had a paper table cloth if I remember, but it is considered to be one of the best restaurants in Rome.
Lots of tourist traps around Piazza Navona, but La Campana is the oldest restaurant in Rome and is actually pretty good and just a five minute walk from the Pantheon. These are the ones that are open on Sunday, good, and within walking distance from the Pantheon.
I know some others, but you'd either have to take a bus or a cab. One is Cesare del Casaletto in the Monteverde neighborhood. You can walk to Torre Argentino then take the tram and get off at the last stop about 3 miles away. Maybe 30 minutes by bus, 15 minutes by cab. It should be on anyone's list of places to eat when in Rome, even though it is out of the city center.
Flavio al Valavevodetto is in the Testaccio neighborhood about a 15 minute cab ride away. Testaccio is a very typical, working class type of neighborhood. You're not going to see many tourists. It's too complicated to get there easily by bus. It's about a 15 minute cab ride. I just walk it. It's about a 35 minute walk, mostly along the Tiber River. It is supposed to be the place where Carlo Petrini, the founder of Slow Food eats when he is in Rome. It is his favorite restaurant in the city. La Torricella is also nearby and in Testaccio, as is Perili, another one of the best restaurants in the city. Not a fancy place, a neighborhood restaurant, but great, authentic local food.
Other outlying neighborhoods, for seafood in Trastevere La Gensola is open. L'Asino D'Oro in the Monti neighborhood not that far from the Colosseum (I used to go to school near there) is outstanding and open on Sunday.
There are more, but these are the ones that I know are open on Sundays. Email them or call of course to be sure because things change. When you call, remember, these restaurants will be closed between 2-2:30 and 7-8 PM.
Don't even think about going to any of them without a reservation. Maybe La Campana, a high turnover place, but that's it. It's sad sitting in seventh heaven eating one of the best meals in your life, and watching couple after couple being turned away because they didn't have a reservation. Occasionally a solo traveler can get lucky with an early seat, and even then they'll usually tell you can only eat if you promise to finish and get out within an hour because the table is reserved. Italians eat later than Americans so sometimes there is a lucky early seat, but once an Italian gets seated, it's there table for the rest of the night, and if you don't have a reservation, you're not getting in.
I have just recently downloaded the Slow Food app and found some more information about a few of these restaurants.
I will definitely make use of your suggestions and will make sure to have a reservation for dining on Sunday night.
Last edited by syndney; May 3, 2015 at 8:07 am
May 6, 2015, 2:46 pm
#12
Formerly known as hcampana
Join Date: May 2010
Location: AMS
Programs: Hilton Diamond
Posts: 463
It actually pains me to give up my little secret, but my absolute favorite restaurant in Rome is Taverna Ripetta. I've been there twice. Both amazing. It's very small, family run, and the food is as authentic and just perfect. The firs time I went, we just stumbled upon it by chance/luck and it was our best meal in Rome. I think that's part of the reason it's so special for me.
But I noticed its on trip advisor now so I guess its not such a secret.
But I noticed its on trip advisor now so I guess its not such a secret.
May 6, 2015, 9:41 pm
#13
Join Date: Mar 2011
Location: SFO, VCE
Programs: AA EXP >4 MM, Lifetime Plat
Posts: 2,881
Don't worry. If she doesn't eat meat, tell her to focus on the burrata (a mozzarella type of cheese dish). I don't think it's possible for a vegetarian to get closer to gustatory heaven than eating burrata at Roscioli.
Last edited by Perche; May 8, 2015 at 9:29 am
May 11, 2015, 6:17 am
#14
Join Date: Feb 1999
Location: T82
Programs: AA Gold, HH Gold
Posts: 2,845
We were at the Westin Excelsior last year. If you turn right as you exit the hotel and walk a couple of blocks to Via Sardegna, then turn right again, it's just a block away...La Bruschetta at #39. We liked it so much that we ate there two nights in a row. You can eat upstairs and watch what's happening in the kitchen or downstairs in the cellar.
May 12, 2015, 1:02 pm
#15
Join Date: May 2010
Location: Piedmont, Italy; Cheshire, UK
Programs: BA Lifetime Gold
Posts: 389
We were at the Westin Excelsior last year. If you turn right as you exit the hotel and walk a couple of blocks to Via Sardegna, then turn right again, it's just a block away...La Bruschetta at #39. We liked it so much that we ate there two nights in a row. You can eat upstairs and watch what's happening in the kitchen or downstairs in the cellar.